Vala and the Lost Boys
by Oldlibrn
Summary: Vala tries to learn about Earth culture and ends up seeing a psychiatrist. Hilarity ensues NOT
1. Chapter 1

_In advance I want to let readers know that I find writing dialog difficult so there will be a lot of straight forward exposition and internal dialogs._

Vala burst out of her room and ran towards Daniel's lab. She was obviously upset and close to tears, though she appeared more angry than anything else. Daniel wasn't in his lab and Vala stood in the hall outside of the room frantically looking around as if she couldn't even begin to think of which direction to go. She shook herself as if to clear her head and started walking down the hall. Vala caught a glimpse of Walter as he headed into Landry's office and followed him. Walter was frightened by the look on Vala's face, he couldn't imagine what had upset her, and he didn't think that he wanted to know.

"Walter, I need to talk to the General." Walter stared at her blankly. "Now!" said Vala. She didn't yell but there was urgency to her voice and a strange look in her eyes.

General Landry called out "What's going on out there Walter?"

"Miss Mal Doran wants to see you, sir."

Landry told Walter to send her in. He was shocked by her appearance. She had a wild look about her, there were dried tears on her face and above all else she looked angry. Jumping to conclusions he asked her if she was having a problem with Dr. Jackson. She looked surprised at his question and shook her head no.

Vala demanded "You are part of the Earth military. I need to know! How do you force soldiers to join your armies? How young are they? What do you do to their families?" As she asked her questions she was looking at Landry as if he was a monster.

He was taken aback by her questions, her obvious distress and her anger. He didn't understand why she was asking those questions but he felt compelled to try and answer her.

"We don't force anyone to join. They have to be at least 18 before they can voluntarily join the military. And we do nothing to anyone's family. Where are these questions coming from? What's happened?"

Vala didn't look convinced by his answers. "Do you mean to tell me that you know nothing about these child soldiers I have read about?"

Landry looked almost ashamed as he had to admit to her "Yes, I know about them."

"And you do nothing? How can you travel through the galaxy saving people from oppression and slavery and allow such situations on your own planet?"

"I know that this may sound foolish to you Ms Mal Doran. But it is complicated."

"I seem to hear that explanation or excuse in response to many of my questions about Earth. Does Daniel know about these children?"

"Vala, I am sure that he has heard stories. I suspect that he, as do many people, tries not to think about things that he can not change. You could destroy yourself if you weren't able to put horrible things out of your mind. And at SGC we are fortunate enough to know that we work to prevent the complete destruction of our planet or the enslavement of everyone on our planet. And with success, at least so far!"

"I think that I may actually understand that, much as I hate to admit it. I know the horror of being a host but I have not dedicated myself to freeing other hosts. I have accepted that I can not save them all and use that as an excuse to save no one."

"Vala, I think you are too hard on yourself"

"No, General. I think that I am most likely not hard enough! I think that I need to apologize for my attack on you. But they are children! It isn't that I am not familiar with cruelty. But this is not done by snakes. The children's own people do this to them."

"Vala, perhaps you would like to talk with someone who might help you understand such human behavior. I know that you don't have much time for psychiatrists, but there is someone on base you may find helpful. If you are willing I would like to arrange for you to speak with Dr. Graham. He is a civilian and not military."

Vala smiled at the General. "I think that might not be a bad idea. Since my "psych" evaluation I have been reading about the subject and must admit I am intrigued." When she spoke she used Cameron's air quotes around the word psych, which made Landry smile. They now all used the terms "Earth hours" and "Earth years" in homage to Mitchell.

Landry excused himself and picked up the phone. Vala heard him speak to someone he called Thomas and make arrangements for Vala to meet with this Thomas.

"Vala, Dr. Graham can see you in an hour. I hope you don't mind, but I have given him access to your file so you won't have to explain yourself to him."

"That's fine General. I'm sure that it will save a lot of time. Where do I meet him?"

"He'll come here to get you. Meanwhile I thought that we could have coffee and perhaps a snack together while we wait. I would really like to talk with you about the children."

Vala's face lit up at the mention of food. "I think that I would like that, General.

Landry walked to the door opened it and sent Walter to the Commissary for their snack. He had Vala sit down, pulled his chair from around his desk and moved it close to her. He took Vala's hands in his and began talking quietly to her.

Most of SG-1 was sitting in the Commissary eating lunch. When Daniel arrived without Vala the others looked at him questioningly.

"I don't know where she is. I left my lab to borrow a book from a friend of mine on SG-12 and then came straight here."

Teal'c said "I am sure that she will arrive soon. Vala Mal Doran has a healthy appetite and doesn't usually miss meals."

Sam & Mitchell nodded and continued to eat. Walter had come in right after Daniel and overheard them.

"Miss Mal Doran is with General Landry. He sent me to pick up some food for them."

"Isn't that a little strange Walter?" asked Mitchell. "What's going on?"

"I couldn't tell you." They all looked at him intently and he answered their unspoken question. "I can't tell you. I have no idea what's going on. Miss Mal Doran stormed into the office like a crazy person."

"What's so different about that?" asked Daniel.

"No. I mean a real crazy person. She was angry and also crying. She went into the general's office and I could hear her yelling at him. I couldn't catch what she was saying but she was close to being hysterical."

"What happened then?" asked Daniel. Listening to Walter speak about Vala's behavior he felt concern for her. Though he wasn't really sure why. He told himself that it was because sometimes other people thought that he should be responsible for keeping her in line.

"It became very quiet and then he made a phone call. Afterwards he opened the door and sent me to get coffee and food for them. She appeared calmer and no longer angry. But she still seemed upset. Landry was smiling at her as he closed the door."

Walter asked Daniel what Vala might like to eat. Sam and Mitchell laughed as Daniel told him that there really wasn't much that Vala didn't like to eat. Sam suggested that he return with at least one thing that was chocolate. If Vala had been crying chocolate was definitely needed.

Walter left with a tray overflowing with food. He had asked the commissary staff and they had filled the tray with items they knew were Vala's favorites. Vala was a frequent visitor to the Commissary all hours of the day and night and had gotten to know many members of the staff. People who prepare food are always happy to find people who enjoy eating what they make.

Listening to the Commissary the staff discussing Vala's taste in food Sam realized that Vala had made friends all throughout the base. Sam thought about a conversation that she had with Vala just a few days ago. For quite a while Sam had wondered why Vala's uniform fit her so well. She had thought that perhaps Vala was wearing a uniform that was simply too small for her. But when she looked more closely at Vala's clothes Sam could see that they were fitted to her body almost as if they were tailored specifically for her. She finally got up enough nerve to ask her about it when they were sitting alone eating Jell-O.

"Vala, I want to ask you about your uniforms."

"Sure, Sam. What do you want to know?"

"How do you manage to find uniforms that fit you so well?"

"Easy" replied Vala. "Rose."

"Rose?" asked Sam.

"Rose, in the laundry."

"We have a laundry?"

Vala laughed at Sam's face. "Of course we do! Most of the laundry goes out with the rest of the Cheyenne Mountain's, but we need to be careful about clothing that has gone off-world. They are very careful about sterilizing everything that returns to Earth. And when teams go off-world in disguise someone has to design and produce the clothes. Rose is a great seamstress and inspired seamstress; she works on all my clothing."

Sam continued to look surprised and puzzled.

"Would you like me to have Rose go over your uniforms with you Sam? "

"I'm still trying to figure out why I don't know anything about the laundry or the people who work there."

"Sam, did you think that your uniforms magically appeared clean and pressed? I have spent many hours on many planets in the middle of streams or rivers or even puddles doing what you would describe as beating clothes with rocks, so I am very grateful for amenities such as laundries. You may not realize it but you do know them, or at least you have seen them. They usually sit at that table over there in the left corner." Sam looked over where Vala pointed and saw a small group of familiar looking people who smiled and waved at Vala. "I frequently eat with them when I am alone in the Commissary. The rest of you often skip meals. I have actually starved at times in my life and never willingly miss food if I am the slightest bit hungry."

Sam smiled back at the group. Vala told her that they knew a lot about all of the SG teams and had very strong opinions about the members. As expected everyone loved Daniel but she wouldn't answer questions about any of the other members of SG-1. Vala carefully explained to Sam that while she enjoyed gossip she would never betray a confidence.

Sam's attention was brought back to the present when Mitchell started to speculate on what might have happened with Vala. Then he started teasing Daniel, accusing him of torturing Vala forcing her to complain to the General. Daniel reacted as Mitchell had hoped he would, vigorously denying that he could in any way be responsible. All the while he denied it Daniel was frantically trying to think if there was anything that he might have done or said to upset Vala. Imagining Vala in the state described by Walter was making him feel sick. He felt an overwhelming need to find her and see what was going on. SG-1 spent a few more minutes speculating about Vala and what might have actually happened. They all agreed that Walter must have overreacted. Vala's personality was certainly mercurial but an angry, crying Vala yelling at Landry was an image too hard for them to wrap their heads around. Daniel was reassured by the fact they were convinced there was no real problem and he pushed his concerns for Vala to the back of his mind. Sometimes Daniel suspected that it had become too easy for him to repress his feelings but he wasn't sure if that was actually a bad thing. It certainly helped him get through the days. Nights were sometimes more problematic.


	2. Chapter 2

_This isn't meant to be a depressing story though the Lost Boy topics aren't the most pleasant. But I needed something that Vala could relate to in a very visceral way and get Landry to introduce Dr. Graham to the mix._

Vala had decided to set two personal goals for herself after watching a self-help author on one of the many TV talk shows she watched. In fact, watching more talk shows on TV was number one on her list of things to do to achieve her first goal. That was to learn more about the Tauri, their planet & their many cultures. It had taken her more than a little time and a lot of reading to even start to understand this planet. There were so many varied places on the Earth with different cultures, peoples, societies, politics, and religions and so on. It was as if Earth was a planet that contained a multitude of other planets. In her experience planets tended to be more homogeneous. Though the Goa'uld might have controlled a planet their culture rarely affected the basic structure of life on that planet. Usually all the cultures on an agrarian planet were agrarian societies. On trade planets everyone was involved in trading. People on mining planets mined. Perhaps it was because the Goa'uld had populated each planet with a single group of people with the same society or culture. Over the years groups may have splintered off but their roots remained the same.

Vala was also realizing how different her experience on Earth would have been if she had arrived in another country. For a long time she had equated Earth with America. When watching television she had begun to catch glimpses of those parts of the planet that were not America. It seemed that the differences had nothing to do with the Stargate. The Americans knew no more about the SGC than the people in any other country. She was convinced that she had been fortunate to end up in this America. But she was fascinated by the other different Earth places she heard about.

Her second goal involved Daniel and Vala thought it could only be helped by her integration into Tau'ri culture, or as she had to remind herself, American culture. Though she was discovering that even this one country seemed at times to be many different countries all at one time.

Vala had been flipping though the channels when she heard the host of a show say that they would be speaking with one of the "Lost Boys of Sudan" after the commercial. Vala immediately thought of Peter Pan and the Lost Boys of Neverland and stayed on the channel waiting for the interview to start.

It turned out that these "Lost Boys" were survivors of the Sudanese Civil War, orphans whose families had been killed by Government troops. The young boys made their way to refugee camps in Kenya and Ethiopia, often taking years to get there walking hundreds of miles through the African wilderness. They had been named after the Peter Pan's group of orphans. Though dismayed by their suffering she was pleased to hear about those who had managed to escape.

Vala was interested in their plight and began to read about these "Lost Boys". Her friends at the Public Library recommended books, films, and other sources of information. She would also search for information on the Internet. It was a depressing subject and an inspiring subject, some people made it out of their horrible existence. That spoke to Vala on a very personal level.

On the morning of the day when she ended up screaming at General Landry, things changed. Vala had been focusing on what she thought of as her "Lost Boys" but that day she had broadened her search and discovered another group of children.

They weren't "Lost Boys" who lived through Hell but made it out, they were "Child Soldiers". Children forced to fight in armies, sometimes forced to commit atrocities even against their own families. Often given drugs to force their compliance the children were easy to manipulate and cheap. The children weren't paid and were easily replaced.

The more she read the worse she felt. After the first hour she had trouble reading through her tears. Though it seemed most of these child soldiers fought in Africa she was shocked to see references to children fighting in countries on all of the continents. She felt compelled to continue reading. Vala understood now what Cameron meant about not being able to look away from a train wreck.

Vala was angry, scared, and shocked. She tore herself away from the images on her computer screen and ran out of her room. Vala couldn't contain her rage, she had to find Daniel. Vala knew that she would start to breathe again once she saw him. Daniel was her anchor, her connection to all that was good. In her world, in her life and in her heart. Daniel was her home.

Vala had decided that after chocolate her favorite English word was "home". In her life (or perhaps lives) Vala had learned that where you lived physically meant nothing. She had been a god, a slave, a criminal and more. Lived in palaces, spaceships and cells. Vala often found inspiration in Earth phrases that were considered platitudes by many. But she knew that a house was not a home. She had pushed her desire to belong somewhere deep inside. Vala had stopped believing that she would ever find a home, or that she deserved a home. She had been betrayed and she had betrayed. She had long ago decided that her behavior was unforgivable and so there was no reason to think about her guilt. In order to function she had learned to ignore and suppress her deepest feelings.

Vala threw open Daniel's door. She felt herself panic, thinking that if she couldn't find him the world would collapse around her and she would be "lost" herself.

Later that afternoon she was glad that she had ended up in General Landry's office. It would have been too easy to find solace and comfort in Daniel. He would have held her and reassured her that all would be right in the world. But it wasn't and she would have been a coward if she had refused to face the realities of her new world. Vala accepted her many faults and flaws, but cowardice had never been one of them. Perhaps she stretched it into recklessness and disregard for her own safety, but that would be part of another flaw. One she felt that she shared with Daniel. Thinking about Daniel brought her comfort but her meeting with Dr. Graham had brought direction to her fear and anger.

Dr. Graham had arrived in Landry's office while they were eating. Landry introduced him to Vala while she continued to eat. Vala enjoyed eating, the simple fact that she had food to eat, leant real enthusiasm to a function considered commonplace to the people at SGC.

"Thomas I would like you to meet Miss Vala Mal Doran. Miss Mal Doran this is Dr. Graham."

Vala smiled at Thomas and focused all of her attention on connecting with him. He understood how she could so easily con and manipulate people. It wasn't a fake smile, she really was happy to meet him and her enthusiasm for life made him respond in kind. He had read her file and was excited about spending time with her. Not as a patient but as an individual. Landry had explained to him on the phone that he wasn't asking for psychiatric treatment for Vala he wanted Thomas to help her find answers. He was looking forward to discovering the questions.

"Miss Mal Doran I am very happy to meet you. I have..."

She interrupted him "Please call me Vala."

"Only if you call me Thomas."

When the man had walked into Landry's office Vala was surprised at how young he was. Feeling as if she was reading a fortune cookie she would describe him as "Tall, dark and handsome". Not as handsome as her Daniel but taller, darker and younger. He had a scruffy, almost, beard like Daniel had when she first arrived on Earth. Vala had discovered that it was actually what they called a "fashion statement" for most men. She suspected that Daniel had just forgotten to shave for a week or three. Though she also suspected that Daniel was not without vanity.

On Thomas it was obviously a choice. Vala had seen enough magazines ads to recognize that he bought his clothes somewhere other than the local mall. She liked to see flair and style in people's appearance, something sorely lacking around a military base. When he returned her smile she felt an immediate connection.

As they shook hands Landry smiled at both of them. He was pleased with himself and felt as if he was involved at the start of something good.

"Well, Thomas" said Vala. "Do we head back to your office so you can get me on your couch?"

He laughed and said "As much as that appeals to me, which it does, you are not my patient. So I'm sad to say that means no couch."

Vala quipped "I think that my not being a patient means we don't rule out any furniture. Couches, chairs, beds!" She was enjoying flirting with Thomas but it wasn't as much fun as flirting with Daniel. There was no chance that she could disconcert this man, let alone make him blush. But it was enjoyable just the same.

"Vala, I think that we will be comfortable in my office. If that's okay with you we can get out of the General's way and head down to my neck of the woods." He noticed Vala's slightly confused look and clarified his statement. "Down to my area of SGC."

"Sounds fantastic! You'll have to explain the necking in the woods part later."

Thomas took Vala's arm and they left the office. Thomas had closed the door when he entered Landry's office and Walter hadn't been able to hear anything the three of them had said. But he heard laughter and when Vala and Dr. Graham came out of the room they were both smiling and General Landry was laughing at the last thing Vala had said.

Vala smiled at Walter saying "Thank you so much for the lovely food, Walter. You managed to bring a large number of my most favorite treats."

Walter managed a quiet "You're welcome." And then they were gone.

Once the General was back in his office Walter slowly let out his breath. Walter was intrigued. Dr. Thomas Graham was their top civilian psychiatrist. He had been brought in recently to supervise a major research study at SGC but he also continued to work at major universities throughout the country. Gossip was that he was smart, nice, gorgeous but "taken."


	3. Chapter 3

Their lunch was over and SG-1 pulled back their chairs and got up to leave, or at least three of them did. Daniel had been looking over towards the door ever thirty seconds or so ever since Walter had left with the food. Mitchell, Sam and Teal'c knew that he was looking for Vala but didn't want to say anything. Daniel was under the mistaken impression that no one knew that he was, at the very least, highly intrigued by one Vala Mal Doran. Both Sam and Teal'c thought it was an excellent state of affairs. They had discussed the fact that Vala was able to elicit such strong reactions from her Daniel, and decided that it could only be a good thing for Daniel to be emotionally challenged by anything or anybody. Sam had spoken to Jack about the situation just the week before. Daniel was frequently the subject of their late night phone calls. Washington and Colorado Springs weren't that far apart geographically. But even if you could commandeer an Air Force jet at any time and with little notice, the phone lines could provide instant contact. Though a little more physical contact would have been enjoyed by them both, Sam and Jack were still in the preliminary stages of an actual "human" relationship.

Mitchell liked to think that as far as Vala and Dr. Jackson were concerned he saw all and said nothing. Mitchell felt the best thing to do was follow Sam and Teal's lead. If they approved, well then so did he. It didn't hurt that Vala made him laugh. It turned out that Vala was a dead ringer for his favorite cousin, Erin. She not only looked like her but their personalities were frighteningly similar. Erin could be as scary as Vala. They could both shoot rings around everyone he knew and he could just imagine the chaos that would result from the two of them playing Texas Hold'em together. Vala and Erin would wipe the floor with any and all challengers.

Daniel stood up and headed for the door just a few steps after the rest of the team. Mitchell and Teal'c headed to the gym and Sam to her lab. Daniel hesitated a second then headed towards his lab, but when he turned the corner he stopped dead in his tracks. He felt an overwhelming desire to locate Vala. Daniel admitted to himself that he really was concerned about the scene Walter had described. The rest of them may have decided that it had been a simple misunderstanding on Walter's part. They felt that since Vala had been known to get passionate about any number of issues someone might easily mistake her excitement for yelling. That didn't ring true to Daniel and he thought that would be underestimating Walter's understanding of the situation. Walter may be quiet but he had his finger on the pulse of the SGC complex. And though he had been known to gossip from time to time, he wasn't usually wrong about the facts. Gossip from Walter wasn't the National Enquirer but more the London Times or Christian Science Monitor. Daniel wasn't sure what he should do next so he headed towards the last place he knew she had been, General Landry's office.

Thomas showed Vala into his office. She had expected something more like the psychiatrist's offices she had seen on television. This was a very plain and somewhat austere room. The walls were off-white as was the carpet. Immediately your eyes were drawn to a low file cabinet where there was a large bowl-like vase filled with blue flowers. Vala was surprised at her reaction to the room. If someone had described it to her she would have thought it sounded depressing but once she sat down she felt herself relax. She sat at a clear glass conference table in a chair that was the twin of those in a normal SGC briefing room. Looking around the room she began to notice more details. The walls were off-white but they were actually wallpapered not painted. The wallpaper appeared to be some sort of silk or linen fabric. The subtle texture of the walls gave the room a very rich feel. When you looked closely the carpet, though off-white, wasn't exactly plain. Vala was pretty sure that it was a wool Dhurri rug similar to one she had seen in a Pottery Barn catalog. There were very faint striations of different white, beige and tan shades of color throughout the carpet. It wasn't striped; but looked more the sides of a cliff or canyon where the rock layers were exposed. Vala felt comfortable in the room, as strange as it might sound she actually felt comforted by the room, comforted and safe. Thomas had a desk in his office but it was in a corner of the room with glass doored bookcases on the walls behind it.

Thomas sat down next to her. "Vala, General Landry seems to think that I might be able to help you with some questions you have about life here on Earth."

Vala told Thomas everything that she had told Landry. Though she didn't yell at him she described to him how she had yelled at the General and how he had reacted to her accusations.

"Vala, I think your questions are about the existence of good and evil in our world and perhaps in your world also. The existence of the Lost Boys and the child soldiers is appalling. Maybe worse is the fact that we don't seem to care, we humans are able to continue with our lives ignoring the anguish that surrounds us."

"Thomas, I am one of the best at ignoring reality. I understand how sometimes ignoring the horror of your life is the only way to continue to function or to even survive. I sometimes wonder if that ability makes me as responsible for bad things that happen as those who do the bad things." Vala was looking closely at Thomas's face trying to discern his reaction to her words. Vala thought to herself that he was good; she couldn't read him at all. She suspected that he would have been a good con man; they could have been a great team back in the old days.

Thomas got up and went to the book case. He opened the door and pulled out four books which he brought over to the table. "Vala, I think that you might find these of some interest. If it is okay with you I would like to meet again in a few days after you have a chance to look through them. There are a number of ideas that we could discuss that may help you understand us "earthlings" just a little better."

His use of the word "earthlings" made her laugh. Especially since he used air quotes around the word. It reminded her of watching what Daniel called sci-fi "B" movies with Mitchell and Teal'c. Sam and Daniel would turn up their noses while the other three members of the team thoroughly enjoyed themselves. Mitchell explained it as a guilty pleasure. Vala and Teal'c insisted with straight faces that they made them homesick.

Vala grinned at Thomas as he piled the books on the table in front of her "I haven't been reading English for very long but Daniel insists that I have an amazing facility with languages. I am also more than willing to use a dictionary."

Thomas said to Vala "Your face lights up when you mention his name."

For some reason his comment made her feel shy, which was an odd feeling for Vala. She quickly picked up the books and held them against her chest. "Just what kind of homework are you giving me Thomas?"

"We'll start with religion, philosophy, psychology and existentialism." Thomas pulled Vala to her feet and pushed her towards the door. "Why don't you call me when you are ready to meet again? I hope you'll have some questions for me because I have some for you. In fact, I have great plans for us. But that can wait."

Vala was excited about the books. She had enjoyed taking part in book group discussions at the public library and expected her meetings with Thomas to be fun. They shook hands and she headed back to her room.

Daniel stood outside of Landry's office. He was trying to decide what he should do when Walter came up behind him.

"Can I help you Dr. Jackson? Did you want to see the General?"

"No, I was just looking for Vala. Is she around?"

"Sorry. She left with Dr. Graham; I think they went to his office." Daniel had a blank look on his face so Walter explained "He's a psychiatrist that General Landry brought in to talk with Miss Mal Doran when she was so upset earlier today."

Thanking him for the information Daniel headed back to his lab. Walter couldn't tell what Daniel was thinking. Daniel couldn't tell what he was thinking either.


	4. Chapter 4

After she put her books on the desk in her bedroom Vala turned and caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror over her dresser. She actually stepped back in reaction to her reflection. Her hair was still in pigtails of sorts. It went way beyond straggly, if that was even a word. Her eyes were reddish and slightly puffy and you could see where her tears had fallen down her face. Though Vala didn't usually wear face makeup she always did something with her eyes. Mascara at the very least and usually black eye liner. Never knowing where she might end up on any given day, downtown Colorado Springs, prisoner in a cell on a strange planet, SGC infirmary, U.S. Congressional hearings, etc. she only used waterproof eye makeup. But even the best mascara Shu Uemura made couldn't stand up to tears of real anguish. She looked like "death warmed over", another fun and apt Tau'ri saying,

Stripping off her clothes as she headed for the shower in her room Vala thought about her appearance. She suspected that Daniel would be surprised about how infrequently she did so. There was a difference between narcissistic vanity and making the most of your physical appearance. Unfair as it might be, attractive people often had an advantage in many life situations. And in many of the situations in her past life she had needed any edge she could find. Though some people might consider attracting the attention of Qetesh a real downside to beauty. Perhaps in one of her future talks with Thomas they could discuss the true essence of beauty. But for now she needed to wash her hair, her face, in fact all of her body. Then she would be off to drag Daniel to dinner. Even thinking about reading through her new books made her hungry.

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There was a quick knock on the door of his lab and as Daniel looked up Vala threw open the door. "I am absolutely starving, darling. I missed lunch and I can't wait another minute. Come on! Move it Daniel." She crossed her arms, tapping her right foot on the floor she wrinkled her brow and with an exaggerated sigh said "Please, Daniel. I don't even have enough strength to come over there and kiss you into submission!"

Daniel realized that he was glad to see Vala. That he felt happy that she was acting like her usual self. She certainly didn't look as if she had been chewing out a General earlier that day. He decided to wait until she had something to eat before he asked her about Dr. Graham. Daniel found himself excited about the idea that he would be able to tease her for once. As Cam was wont to say "pay back can be a bitch." He smiled at her, closed the book he had been translating, got up out of his desk chair and headed for the door. Daniel continued to smile as he took hold of her arm by the elbow and walked out of the room.

Vala was happy. Daniel was acting like he did when they were working together and they deciphered a difficult section of a translation. As the last word was transcribed he would smile at her and she would look directly into his eyes as he did the same to her. Though the look would be fleeting and in a second he would turn away, declare that he needed coffee and they would head off to the Commissary, the look was real.

Mitchell and Teal'c were already sitting at the table when Vala and Daniel walked into the room arm in arm. They both noticed that Daniel was holding her arm and that she wasn't dragging him. Sam came in behind the couple and noticed the same thing. Mitchell and Teal'c had decided not to mention General Landry to Vala. Since they had no first hand knowledge of any possible situation they felt uneasy bringing it up. They were sure that Sam would act the same. Daniel was a possible wild card and they would simply wait and see if he mentioned anything.

After filling their trays, Vala's ending up fuller than most; they sat at the table with the rest of the team. Daniel was practicing what he would say to Vala about the "shrink". After a few minutes of casual conversation he noticed that no one had brought up the topic of Vala's supposed meltdown. His studied teasing comments depended on having the topic already part of the discussion. Daniel actually felt disappointed and realized that he had been looking forward to trading barbs with Vala. Especially when he thought he would have had the upper hand for once. The team soon settled into their normal meal time banter, discussing their next off-world mission, which movie to watch at this week's movie night, Teal'c, Mitchell and Vala making fun of Sam and Daniel for their ignorance of the latest American idol episode, etc. Vala was usually the last to leave the table. She always ate dessert and loved it when Jack was on-base so she had someone to eat with her. The rest of the team had left Vala and Daniel behind at the table. Daniel would never tell anyone but he liked watching Vala eat. It made him think back to their time together on the Prometheus and when she had laid on the table eating while he read the Book of Origin in the City of Celestis. It was nice to see how happy eating made her and he sometimes wondered if food meant so much to her because she had done without some time in her life. The movie "Tom Jones' had made a very strong impression on him when he saw it at a film festival in college and while she ate he would catch himself flashing back on the infamous eating scene. As he got up to leave he expected Vala to ask if she could come back to his lab with him offering to help with his current project. When she said nothing he assumed that she wanted to return to her room to watch a favorite television show. Vala smiled and said goodnight to Daniel waving as he went out the door. He walked slowly down the hall expecting Vala to be right behind him. When she didn't appear he quietly stepped back towards the door and looked into the room. Vala was sitting in the corner of the room with a small group of people who were listening intently to her, she was speaking softly and they were all leaning in to make sure they heard what she was saying. He was a little surprised that there were just as many women as men in the group. As he left the room for the second time the group broke into laughter that seemed to follow him out the door.

Vala was telling the laundry crew about her adventure with Landry and Dr. Graham. Though not surprised they were pleased to hear how the General handled himself. It confirmed their high opinion of the man which made everyone happy. The men were disgusted when all of the women agreed with Vala's description of Dr. Graham as yummy. Vala didn't ask them to keep quiet about her spending time with Dr. Graham but to keep discreet. She wasn't his patient so it wasn't a question of not spilling secrets; Vala just wasn't sure how she would bring it up to SG-1. If she only saw Thomas one more time she might never mention it. Vala was more than a little embarrassed about her "attack" on the General and didn't see how she could explain her seeing Dr. Graham without mentioning it.

With much loud laughter Vala and her friends discussed the fashion sense, or tragic lack thereof, of Lindsey, Brittney and Paris. Once they finished their dinner break and headed back to the laundry facility Vala returned to her room and her books.

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After two days Vala had called Thomas and made an appointment to see him. Though she hadn't finished the books she had made a substantial dent in them. The fact that she slept very little had helped. Vala had written some notes to take to her first meeting with Thomas. Before she left for his office she went over them. While she read the books she had scribbled down some of her questions and thoughts.

Religion

Philosophy

Psychology

Bad things happen to good people – Kushner

Why doesn't God prevent evil

Why not intervene

Why should people suffer

Should we be angry with God

Is God angry with us

What is Karma

Does anything really explain the existence of evil in the world

Do victims deserve what happens to them

Are victims to blame

She had written out a complete quote by Philip Zimbardo the President of the American Psychological Association. The concepts of ideologies, groups norms and dehumanization spoke to her questions about the Lost Boys and child soldiers.

"It is easy to identify individuals who willfully degrade and destroy other human beings as "_**evil**_." Starting with the Biblical characterization of Lucifer as God's favorite angel transformed into the dark force of the devil and cast into hell, scores of evildoers fill history's hall of shame. In recent times, Hitler, Stalin, Mao and many others stand out as mass murderers. However, as a social psychologist I prefer to identify situational conditions that can facilitate or seduce good people into becoming perpetrators of _**evil**_, such as adherence to destructive ideologies, rules, roles, uniforms, group norms, along with processes of dehumanization, deindividuation and moral disengagement."

Vala couldn't believe how excited she was about meeting with Thomas and talking about her questions and ideas. She also wanted to ask him if he thought that it was strange for her to feel a little guilty for not sharing her experiences with Daniel. When she read something that excited her she had to work to keep herself from running off to talk to him. But though he often worked late most nights he did eventually go home to his apartment. Vala would be up reading late into the night and Daniel was usually off-base, unless there was a crisis or he had acquired a new and exciting artifact.

When Vala got to his office Thomas was waiting for her and had all sorts of snacks laid out for her. They spent three hours discussing good and evil, human nature, God, the Devil, the Ori, the Goa'uld, psychology, and more. When she got up to leave although Vala didn't felt that she had found any answers she was pleased with the questions that she had found.

When she questioned him about his beliefs Thomas explained to Vala that instead of expending time and energy into questions such as "is there evil" or "why are people evil" he wanted to concentrate on helping the victims of evil. The evil actions have already been done. It would be great if other people were able to find ways to prevent future evil acts. But he wanted to work with the victims and help lessen the effect of the evil on their lives. His thought resonated with Vala and all that she had experienced in her life. Thomas knew about her life and they mentioned some of her experiences in passing but it wasn't the major thrust of their discussion.

Vala had picked up her notebook and a cookie for the walk back to her room when Thomas asked her to stay for a moment. She was more than happy to do as he asked and sat down eating her cookie.

"Vala, I have a question, actually it is more of a request. There is something that I want you to do for me." He seemed nervous and Vala wasn't sure how she should feel about his being nervous. Thomas continued, "Your experiences as a host, performing horrible acts against your will, surviving while people you love are destroyed in front of your eyes or even by your hand are unique. I want to take advantage of your experiences."

Thomas saw that Vala was terrified as he forced her to recall her years as Qetesh. But he continued to talk. "I spoke to General Landry and he has given his permission for you to be involved with my project as much or as little as you want. Or, of course, not at all."

He reached over and took her hands in his. Realizing that she was trembling and felt cold to the touch Thomas stood up and went to stand by her chair. She raised her face to his and her expression was completely blank. Thomas pulled Vala to her feet and hugged her to his chest. After a minute he felt her relax and he started to speak softly into her ear.

"Vala I need you to help me with children who have done horrible things and have had horrible things done to them. They need to understand that they are not to blame, that they didn't deserve what happened to them, and that it isn't their fault. These children are lost and I know that you can help me help them."


	5. Chapter 5

_All of your generous and gracious reviews are greatly appreciated. _

All of SG-1 had noticed that Vala seemed a little subdued lately. She was still the same lively woman who teased Daniel mercilessly but somehow she seemed to be less loud and a little less volatile. Sam had been thinking to herself that Vala seemed a little less bright, not bright as in intelligent more like shiny bright. She wasn't sure exactly what that meant but bright just seemed the right word.

Mitchell said what he thought the rest were thinking. "Do you think she's depressed or something? Should we be worried?"

Sam jumped in "I don't think that's it. I've had some experience with people who were clinically depressed. One of the signs is a loss of interest in food." All four of them laughed at the thought of Vala not eating.

"And they often lose interest in their outward appearance."

At this point Vala walked in the door. There were bright yellow ribbons in her pigtails and a long yellow scarf thrown around her neck. She smiled and waved at them as she went to the end of the line to pick up a tray.

Mitchell whistled very softly saying "I certainly wouldn't say she's neglecting her appearance."

Daniel looked intently at Mitchell, then at Vala and back again at Mitchell. Mitchell stared back at Daniel saying "What? I was just confirming Sam's diagnostic skills."

"Daniel Jackson, are you not pleased at the changes in Vala Mal Doran's behavior? She is more quiet than usual but I would expect you to consider that an improvement."

Sam chimed in "Teal'c that's a good point. Or, Daniel could it be a case of getting what you asked for and then finding out that it really wasn't exactly what you wanted after all?"

Daniels' eyes opened wider but there was no reaction on his face. It occurred to him that maybe Sam was going to take up any slack in Vala's teasing. Jack was definitely a bad influence on her. Daniel didn't really believe that, he loved it when Sam sounded like Jack. It gave him hope that they would be able to manage a relationship in spite of all the chaos in their lives. Hunting down the remaining followers of the Ori, continuing to work on keeping Earth safe from whatever else might be out there, looking for technology to help not only to protect Earth but to improve life on Earth for everyone, etc., etc.

The line was very long and moving very slowly which put Vala out of earshot. Looking closely at Vala, Mitchell asked "How does that woman manage to look so good in BDUs?"

Seemingly out of the blue Sam asked "Did you guys know that there is a laundry here at SGC?"

Daniel and Mitchell shook their heads "no", but Teal'c replied "Of course, that is Rose's, I mean Captain Rose Long's, area."

"Captain?"

"Rose is a xenobiologist Samantha Crater."

"In charge of a laundry?"

"The Air Force takes it obligation to protect Earth from any and all possible off-world contagions very seriously."

Sam continued "But Vala told me that Rose was a seamstress, that she was the one who tailored Vala's uniforms."

"Indeed! Rose studied Design but eventually chose science as her career. But she retains her love for fashion. It is Rose who helps me find my hats for when I am "Murray". Rose has an extensive Murray wardrobe that she keeps in her conference room. She does not allow me to purchase my clothes in the stores at the mall. What Rose doesn't make herself she obtains from her friends in New York and Milan"

Mitchell protested loudly "That is so unfair! No wonder Teal'c always looks like he just stepped out of GQ."

"And another thing, why is it that the aliens get the custom tailoring?"

Sam said, almost to herself, "Maybe because they are the only ones who have gotten to be friends with Rose and her "crew"."

Mitchell protested again "But we didn't even know they existed."

Daniel had the grace to add "Maybe that is Sam's point."

Vala suddenly appeared next to Daniel, sat in the chair beside him and scooted it closer to him after she put her tray on the table. Putting a lie to the depression question she started her usual steady and robust attack upon the food in front of her.

Sensing their eyes on her she looked up as she bit into a peach. Juice began to run down her chin while she returned their stares. A hand appeared, seemingly out of nowhere, with a napkin which they used to capture the juice. Everyone, including Vala, looked up at the man behind her. Vala's neck was craned back at an odd angle as she tried to focus on the face.

"Vala, dear. I know how much you enjoy your food but peach juice will stain your lovely scarf."

"Thomas!" Vala jumped out of her chair while at the same time turning around to face her friend.

She smiled broadly and Daniel had a bad feeling that she was going to leap up and throw her legs around the man's waist. He told himself that it would be bad because it would be embarrassing if she behaved that way in the Commissary.

But Vala simply laid her hand gently on Thomas's wrist and turned to her team. "I would like you all to meet …" As Vala finished the introductions Mitchell was heard muttering something about another one of Rose's valued clients. Sam had to admit that the phrase "fashion plate" sprung to mind when you looked at Dr. Graham. Sam thought that he looked like a young Tom Selleck; there was certainly a Magnum vibe about him. But with a lot better clothes, a whole lot better clothes. Pretty much the same body though. Sam exchanged glances with Vala communicating her firm approval of the specimen Vala had managed to acquire.

Vala had introduced him as Dr. Graham but made no mention of his position at SGC. Mitchell asked Thomas if he was a civilian, in case he just hadn't had a chance to change into his uniform.

Thomas said "Yes, I'm a civilian. Actually I'm just a part-time research contractor her at SGC." Thomas looked into Vala's eyes and quietly asked her if she was alright. She nodded without saying anything.

"I am sorry that I have to leave so quickly but I was on my way out. I looked for you in your room Vala, and then I moved on to Daniel's lab. When you weren't there I was sure that you were somewhere eating something. So I came here hoping to find you."

Thomas smiled at SG1 as he moved towards the door with Vala in tow. Daniel heard Thomas say "I have to leave town for a few days. We will meet as soon as I return, just call me. And, Vala, I don't want to pressure or rush you, take all the time you need to make your decision." As he said the last few words Thomas touched his finger to her nose which made her smile.

Vala returned to the table and resumed eating. Mitchell caved first asking her "who was that guy?"

"Thomas is a doctor. General Landry introduced me to him. He is very nice and very smart. I really like him."

Sam added. "Don't forget tall, dark and handsome."

Vala leaned over to Sam and whispered loudly "that was exactly what I thought when I first saw him. I think that is why I sometimes think of Chinese food when I see him."

She replied to the unspoken why, "Because it sounded like a fortune cookie."

Turning to Daniel she asked him if he had any projects that they could work on later. He said no but that he would call her if something came up. Daniel then took off for his lab.

Sitting at his desk Daniel was still trying to process the appearance of the psychiatrist and Vala's reaction to him. And Dr.Graham's almost intimate behavior towards Vala. He wasn't sure if it was completely appropriate for a doctor and patient to act that way. Daniel realized that he couldn't articulate what he meant by "that way". He just knew that it felt wrong. At one point it did occur to him that he was really feeling jealous. The thought scared him but not just because it threatened to bring up repressed feelings for Vala that he worked so hard to keep down. He was scared because he knew her well enough to know that she wasn't trying to make him jealous. She liked Thomas and he liked her. Deciding that two minutes of introspection was two minutes that could have been better spent on an artifact, an encrypted text or even an overdue mission report Daniel focused his mind on not focusing on Vala and Thomas.


	6. Chapter 6

_Reviewers have complained about the lack of dialogue in the story. I apologize. That was why I put a caveat at the start of the first chapter. (Please see below)_

"_In advance I want to let readers know that I find writing dialog __difficult so there will be a lot of straight forward exposition and __internal dialog."_

_When I write dialog it often reads to me like lines in a play. Without a performance it is difficult to communicate any nuances to the words. _

Vala and Thomas had been meeting once or twice a day for the last week. They always met between lunch and dinner. It was a time when Vala usually watched daytime TV in her room, a time when no one expected to see her out of her room. Some days they would also meet in the morning. Thomas came in to work very early and on those nights when she was unable to rest Vala would still be up. On those mornings Vala would go to his office to talk. Thomas knew that she often slept badly and suffered from intense dreams. It wasn't an unusual side-effect of a life of unconceivable abuse. Before they had even begun to talk about her experiences Thomas described a possible scenario of her post-Qetesh life that was absolutely correct. Thomas also talked to her about the defense mechanisms that she had developed in order to function, how she had forced herself to suppress her feelings in order to protect her inner core. Again she was amazed at how accurate he was. After awhile Thomas pointed out that that type of insight was what he did for a living.

Thomas also tried to help her understand Daniel. Thomas would remark on how similar their experiences were and how similar they were in how they choose to cope with their pain. Vala had insisted that she was healthier than Daniel, that she was usually happy while he was always miserable. That she got along with people, enjoyed being with them and had made a life for herself in spite of all that had been done to her. Thomas didn't pretend to know all the details of Daniel's own painful journey through life, but Vala had shared some information. Thomas had pointed out to Vala that Daniel also enjoyed many aspects of his life. His work and his friendships were very important to him. Thomas told her that Daniel was probably as happy as Vala and took pleasure in explaining to Vala how that really wasn't saying very much. While explaining what he meant by that Thomas laughed so hard that he started to choke. It was during a snack break and his candy bar almost went down his windpipe. Afterwards they spent an inordinate amount of time discussing what would have been put on his death certificate and decided on Death by Kit-Kat. They made each other laugh and they didn't care if other people got their jokes; they thought that they were hysterical. Thomas's partner Jason had met with them a few times. He was heavily involved in the non-Air Force part of the project. Jason often had to ask them to calm down and tell them to shut up. He tried to explain that no one with any intelligence or common sense thought they were even remotely amusing. The look on his face made them laugh harder. What made it worse was that he was serious, which only made them act even sillier. Jason would ignore them until they started to behave in what he called a "more adult fashion." Jason thought laughing about someone choking was unacceptable. Jason's reaction to their joking banter about Qetesh taking over Vala's body, Daniel's repeated deaths, Jack's even more deaths courtesy of Baal, a wide variety of torture experiences [as torturer and torturee, being burned alive, etc. was that it was horrible.

Thomas tried to explain to him about "gallows humor". Jason accused Thomas of being overly pedantic when he insisted on getting a book off his bookshelf to show them what Freud had written about the subject. "The ego refuses to be distressed by the provocations of reality, to let itself be compelled to suffer. It insists that it cannot be affected by the traumas of the external world; it shows, in fact, that such traumas are no more than occasions for it to gain pleasure". Vala just loved the image of someone standing on a gallows with their head in a "noose" making jokes about their situation. She also loved it when Thomas would insist on making her read passages out of books to support his point, it reminded her of Daniel. Vala thought that Thomas and Daniel were alike in many ways and could be friends. Vala now wished that she had included Daniel from the beginning, he would have enjoyed their discussions and could have helped with the project. Though she was afraid that he might not approve of her involvement, he had at times accused her of being reckless and might think that this was another time. It didn't help when serious Jason kept blathering on about "informed consent" even after she volunteered to sign any waiver that he wanted to write.

Thomas had tried to convince Vala that she should share their plans with her team, especially Daniel. Thomas wasn't sure why she resisted the idea. Vala had talked freely about the project with most of her other friends on base. Rose and her crew, the cleaning staff, her Marine buddies at her longstanding Wednesday poker game had all given her advice on her decision. Thomas's best guess was that though they were friends Vala wasn't as close to them as she was to her team. He posited that the emotional distance made it easier for her; she was able to discuss this new part of her life with them because of that distance. Whereas most people would open up to the people they felt closest to, Vala would open up last to them. It mattered to her what the team thought of her. She could dismiss any judgments made by her casual friends. Something she couldn't do with those people dearest to her heart. The ability to hide in order to survive was one of her most highly developed skills; and she had perfected it both physically and emotionally.

Months earlier Vala had decided that the name for her disparate circle of friends throughout the base would be Vala's Gang. She had considered calling them the Hole in the Mountain Gang but agreed that would be a little over the top. As much as she enjoyed science fiction movies with Teal'c recently Mitchell had turned her on to Westerns. She loved the lack of technology; the world they depicted was truly alien to her. Vala would take horses and cows over unicorns and fairies anytime. Mitchell was surprised that she enjoyed the rigid division of the world into black hats versus white hats as long as the occasional charming "bad boy" outlaw, beloved by everyone, was thrown into the mix. She didn't even mind if they came to a tragic end because goodness always triumphed. That was the ultimate fantasy for Vala.

Vala had once asked Thomas if their conversations counted as therapy. Thomas explained that she was a friend and a colleague and that they counted as talking about her problems with a friend. She wanted it to be clear that they weren't doctor and patient, both to herself and General Landry. Vala had been told of comments alluding to Thomas's inappropriate behavior with a patient, meaning her. Walter was a dear man but he couldn't be trusted with any secrets. Gossip was his middle name. And that was used to people's advantage. If you wanted something to get around the base you simply told Walter. It was a point of honor that no one lied to Walter, he wasn't told gossip. Walter was always told the truth. Therefore everyone on base trusted what Walter said. The tricky part was if he got an idea into his head on his own, people had to be on guard to dissuade him when he read a situation incorrectly. Since Landry knew the truth about Thomas and Vala no one had worried when Walter got upset about how Thomas and Vala acted towards each other. If Walter spoke to Landry he knew the truth and the same if anyone under Landry came to talk to him about it. The General had reserved the right to disclose the truth to anyone whenever he saw fit. He didn't want any gossip to tarnish Thomas's reputation, as it could impact his career. Vala had insisted that people thinking that she was going to a shrink and behaving incorrectly would only enhance any reputation that she might have. Landry didn't try to dissuade her of her erroneous belief. He knew that Vala was unaware of her reputation as a slightly eccentric "bad" but lovable member of the famous SG-1 team. Her sacrifices on the part of Earth were respected and her courage appreciated throughout SGC and she was funny. This was a trait greatly appreciated by people who worked under great stress. But it had never occurred to Vala's Gang that she hadn't told her teammates the truth. Or they would have made sure SG1 didn't hear any false gossip about her and Thomas.

By the end of the week Vala felt that she was ready to give Thomas and Jason her answer. She had berated poor General Landry about his possible involvement with the child soldiers. Vala felt that now she could hardly refuse a chance to help the same children and perhaps have something good come out of her pain and suffering. In spite of the fact that reliving those experiences would lead to more pain and suffering for her. Thomas had made it clear that it wouldn't be a pleasant experience for her; in fact he predicted that she would end up having nightmares that were worse than anything she had ever experienced. That thought alone gave her pause. She had never told anyone the details about her nightmares, the bad ones or the hideously bad ones.

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Meanwhile Daniel had been forced to face some uncomfortable but undeniable facts. Sam had been correct, which he should have known. He now missed "his Vala" and wasn't sure if a subdued Vala was what he wanted now that she was there. Though Daniel could tell that the changes in her behavior, while noticeable, weren't all that major or extensive. Vala might be more guarded in voicing or acting on her reactions, but she still had the same reactions. Daniel knew that she was at heart the same person, though it was as if something or someone was subtlety reining her in. It felt to him that she was afraid of something, but not physically afraid. Vala was fearless close to the point of being self-destructive. Daniel had also faced the fact that he was disappointed and even hurt that Vala didn't talk to him about what was happening in her life. When Daniel forced himself to think about his relationship with Vala, a relationship that after she had returned to him in the warehouse he no longer denied to himself, he ignored their day to day squabbling. With or without the bracelets they had bonded to each other. Something that he was convinced had started on the Prometheus. In typical repressed Daniel style he hadn't yet thought through what his feelings meant in the "real world". He had been content to push the issue to the back burner of his somewhat bent psyche.

Daniel had attempted to talk to Teal'c about his intuitions; Teal'c had suggested that perhaps if Vala was afraid it was fear of upsetting him. Daniel was convinced that Teal'c knew more than he was letting on. Daniel also knew that Teal'c would, if not exactly lie, would certainly misdirect in order to protect Vala.

The most troublesome fact for Daniel was that, in spite of his attempts to confine his feelings to a rational and intellectual level, he was jealous. A jealousy that was visceral and unreasoning but that he found difficult to ignore. Daniel wanted to completely reject what was such a cliché. The mild-mannered nerdy scientist is forced to confront his feelings for the "girl", driven by some clichéd oversimplified concept of male instinct. In spite of his desire to ignore his feelings he had almost hit Cameron yesterday, even though he knew that Mitchell was only goading him to force a reaction.

Daniel and Mitchell were alone at a table waiting for the rest of SG-1 to arrive in the commissary. Vala was the next team member to come in and as she stood in line Mitchell looked at Vala and then at Daniel. Once he saw that Daniel was staring intently at Vala he began quietly commenting on her appearance. Daniel knew that Mitchell was watching him look at Vala but he couldn't look away. Today her pigtails were gone; her hair was straight and upswept with loose strands of hair framing her face. Daniel had no idea how he knew that her hair style was "upswept", though he had a faint memory of Cassie showing him photos of prom hairstyles. Daniel was aware that Vala looked different, more sophisticated and glamorous, but he found her pigtails more alluring. Sophisticated made him think Qetesh.

Mitchell's voice broke through Daniel's thoughts. "Vala certainly looks good in her custom uniform. She doesn't wear off the rack Air Force regulation uniforms so I can't imagine that she is wearing military issue underwear. It's sort of fun to imagine what she does have on under there. I always preferred red myself but Vala …"

Before he could finish his sentence Daniel glared at him and forcefully grabbed his arm. The look in Daniel's eyes convinced Mitchell that he might just get hit in the next ten seconds. He didn't want to get hit but he had wanted to see Daniel's reaction to his crass comments about Vala. Knowing that it was an underhanded sexist ploy Mitchell didn't regret what he did. He also looked forward to telling Sam about it. She would in no way approve but he was pretty sure that she would laugh in spite of herself.


	7. Chapter 7

"Walter, what do you know about this Dr. Graham?"

Sam had decided to try and find out what might be going on between Vala and her shrink. Thomas had seemed nice when SG-1 met him in the Commissary. Sam had run into them a few times in the corridors throughout the base and at odd hours in the Commissary. She had joined them for a meal on one or more occasion. It was obvious that Thomas and Vala liked each other. The "word on the street" (as much as there was a "street" at SGC) was that Thomas was a man to be trusted in addition to being almost as attractive as Daniel Jackson or Cameron or Jack or Teal'c, the comparison depended on the personal opinion of the individual. Along with quite a number of SGC personnel Sam would have filled in the blank with Jack. In fact Daniel's closest competition was Jack.

Vala did flirt with Thomas and he certainly flirted back. Sam would have described the tenure of their relationship as intimate but not an obvious sexual intimacy. In contrast Daniel's antagonistic responses to Vala's flirtatious overtures when taken together were a textbook illustration of the classic "sexual tension", and often so intimate that the rest of the team felt like voyeurs.

Walter was a little uneasy gossiping with Sam. She was always pleasant to him and made him feel that his work was appreciated and his skills valued. But she had never solicited personal information about anyone at SGC before. Sam didn't know that he was the underground source for all SGC gossip. She was asking him because he was the one who had told them about Vala's purported "meltdown" in General Landry's office.

"I can tell you what I saw myself. Vala pushed her way into the General's office on the edge of hysteria." Well meaning and without malice Walter had unconsciously begun to embellish the story, enhancing his memories to fit what he now believed to be the truth.

"She started yelling and crying at the General. Before he closed the door I heard her talking about children and soldiers and something or someone being lost." Sam looked at him for further details and he simply shrugged.

"I am pretty sure that I heard her mention Daniel Jackson during her ranting. I assumed that he was somehow involved since it was Vala." Walter hadn't been able to discover anything about what had made Vala so angry with Landry. The General was not a man to lose his temper but Walter had seen him get close to it when dealing with Vala. On this occasion he didn't hear the General raise his voice to her at any time.

"She was crying and I think that she scared General Landry. After a few minutes the volume level dropped to normal conversational tones and the General made an internal telephone call. I didn't find out who he had called until Dr. Graham showed up, obviously expected."

Sam asked "Did Vala go off with the doctor?"

Walter nodded. "I think that the General wanted to get Vala psychiatric help as soon as possible. He was smiling when they left and I think he was happy to see her leave."

Adding "Dr. Graham has been reporting back to the general on a regular basis, both by phone and in person. Dr. Graham met with the General just yesterday; they spoke for over an hour. I think that Landry is taking his responsibility for Vala's breakdown very seriously. I must admit that I had expected him to meet with Dr. Jackson alone or with Dr. Graham."

Sam didn't question Walter any further. She was sure that if Daniel was involved with Vala's crisis that neither Dr. Graham nor General Landry would involve him in her therapy. Patients had to feel sure that their innermost secrets would be safe with their doctor. Sam also knew that if Vala's problems would have an adverse effect on SGC or the Air Force that Dr. Graham would be obligated to discuss the situation with the General.

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Vala continued to spend all but a few hours in the afternoon of each day with Daniel, bothering him in his lab as usual. She was a little quieter than she had been in the past but he only noticed it because he was looking for it. Vala mentioned Thomas but not to excess. There was no reason for Daniel to feel threatened by their relationship and he didn't. Until while they ate dinner Vala started showing SG-1 some small item that Thomas had given to her that day. They weren't lavish gifts but Vala was obviously thrilled by them. Once it was a pirate Pez dispenser, Daniel got so fed up with her constant clicking that he threatened to confiscate it. During dinner she showed it off to the rest of the team as if it was some valuable piece of "loot". Her obvious joy made him feel badly about his threat. Mitchell was amazed that Vala had never seen Pez before and even more amazed when she ate four packages within minutes. He tried to explain to her that Pez was like Spam, no one actually enjoyed eating it. Vala always defended Thomas' choice of gifts. Saying about the Pez dispenser "He likes to bring serendipitous items for me from the outside world. Thomas knows that I get curious about life outside of SGC."

The next day it was the two volume set of the Shorter Oxford English Dictionary.

Mitchell teased "That's the type of thing I would expect you to give a girl, Daniel. Not a sophisticated suave psychiatrist."

Regarding the dictionary Vala declared "I love it. It helps me with some of the books Thomas has me read."

Mitchell commented "Your English is pretty good. I'm surprised that you have any trouble reading."

"It is not just a question of understanding English, this dictionary also provides information on the etymology of the words."

Forestalling Mitchell's question Daniel explained "That means it shows the history of the words." Mitchell gave him a "whatever!" look.

Vala continued "But I do have problems with some of the words in the books."

Sam and Daniel were both curious about the books that Thomas was having Vala read. They both spoke at the same time "What books …"

They broke off and Vala answered their unfinished question "The last was by someone named Kierkegaard." All four SG-1 members looked at her with puzzled faces but for different reasons. "We are exploring the Tau'ri concepts of God, faith and the existence of evil. It all ties in very nicely with the Goa'uld."

Daniel was impressed but he wasn't sure that Sam and Mitchell knew enough to be impressed. It wasn't that he didn't think they were unintelligent just not well versed in philosophy.

Mitchell asked "Isn't that the guy who said God is dead?"

Vala and Daniel answered at the same time "No, that was Nietzsche."

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Later that night Daniel's head hurt so much that he had to stop working. At dinner while Vala was showing them the dictionary it felt as if a large and heavy rock had fallen on his head. In his mind it was actually the Rosetta Stone. Daniel quickly pushed aside the image and was able to ignore it until his headache refused to be ignored any longer. He hadn't like it but he had admitted to himself that he was jealous of the time and attention Thomas paid to Vala. But the thought that Vala was talking etymology with Thomas, that they discussed linguistics together made him sick. Though he wouldn't admit it to anyone if he had to choose he would rather she slept with the guy. He knew that Mitchell would find that insane, but it made perfect, though clearly dysfunctional, sense to him.

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Sam went to talk to Daniel in his lab one day after lunch. She was fairly sure that Vala wouldn't be there. Vala was usually watching TV at that time but Sam was pretty sure that was when she was having her sessions with Dr. Graham.

"Daniel, what do you think about Dr. Graham?"

"Why? Did Mitchell say something to you?"

"What would Mitchell say to me about Dr. Graham?"

"Sam, he thinks I'm jealous of the doctor."

"Are you, Daniel?"

"To be honest, I'm not sure. I think that I am, but I don't think I would let it cloud my judgment about him. And if she is happy with him I'm not in any position to come between them."

"I don't know about her being happy with him. I am concerned about the type of relationship they have. I don't know a lot about therapy but I think the patient doctor relationship isn't usually that close. They seem to spend a lot of time together outside of their sessions. Thomas gives her gifts, not expensive gifts I'll admit. But they seem to be very personal gifts."

Sam and Daniel sat and looked at each other with troubled faces. Sam spoke first "Daniel, if we think he is acting inappropriately what should we do? First talk to Vala or maybe Thomas or do we go straight to Landry?" The two friends continued to look at each other while they thought.

Mitchell walked into the room with an odd expression on his face. "Can one of you two explain to me why the guy cleaning the floor just whispered to me "She likes Thomas, but everyone knows that she loves Dr. Jackson." Then he gave me a knowing look before he went back to his mop."

"My God! Does everyone on this base feel that my personal life is their concern?"

Sam explained "I think perhaps it is more that many of the people on the base are concerned with Vala's life which leads them to being concerned about you."

"Sam, I don't want to but I think that we should speak to Landry and tell him that we are concerned about Vala and Thomas. It really doesn't appear to be as professional a relationship as it should be."

Mitchell jumped in "So you two think Thomas acts a little hinky towards Vala. I agree. But don't you think that one of us should talk to Vala before we go to Landry. I'm not sure how comfortable I feel about going to the General as the first step. Vala may be leading the good doctor astray without realizing that it could ruin his career."

Sam immediately pounced on Mitchell. "Don't even think about blaming this on Vala. If anything she is the victim here. I don't know how many psychiatrists she has run into in her myriad travels but he is the professional. There is no excuse for him to take advantage of her. You too, Daniel. You are so quick to make everything out to be her fault. But you are not blameless, she puts herself out there for you and you reject her again and again. How many times does she have to save your ass or earth's collective ass before you cut her a break? She acts like its one big joke but anyone can see how much you hurt her."

Sam saw Daniel's stricken face and felt horrible. She went and knelt by him and took his hands in hers. "I'm so sorry Daniel. I don't know where that came from. I really didn't mean to attack you like that. You may owe Vala your life but that doesn't mean you have to care about her. Don't let guilt take you somewhere you don't want to go!"

Mitchell made a disgusted sound. "Give me a break you two! Daniel loves Vala and Vala loves Daniel. Everybody knows it. It's too bad that they are both emotional cripples, and it isn't their faults. They have had to endure untold pain and suffering, yada, yada, yada, blah, blah, blah. But at some point they just have to suck it up and face the notion that they may actually end up happy."


	8. Chapter 8

_**This is my apology for any and all offensive references to psychological theory in this story. Reading about "child soldiers" immediately made me think of Goa'uld hosts, which made me think of my favorite all-time host Vala Mal Doran. So I jerry rigged and kludged together some sort of half-assed pseudopsycholgy and psychobabble to make my story work out. I wanted Vala to be a hero, once again, but in another venue and I needed a way to bring in Thomas. I am aware that PTSD is a very serious subject and I hope that I made that clear in my story. Anything about etiology, treatment, outcome, etc. is completely made-up. I think it would be neat if ex-Goa'uld hosts could help people with psychological disorders but since they don't actually exist this is psychological science fiction at best. **_

_**N.B. **__**Approximately 7.7 million Americans a year**__** suffer from **__**post-traumatic stress disorder**__** (PTSD) according to the National Institute of Mental Health.**_

_**http://www.nimh.nih.gov/**__** National Institute of Mental Health**_

_**http://www.ncptsd.va.gov/ncmain/index.jsp**__** National Center for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder - U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs**_

_**https:// Anxiety Disorders Association of America**_

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Sam, Mitchell and Daniel went looking for Teal'c; they had decided that they would ask his opinion of Thomas and Vala. While they did value his assessment of the situation in the back of all their minds was the hope that he would volunteer to speak with Vala.

Teal'c agreed that Vala did not act as if Dr. Graham was treating her in an appropriate manner. While there were no Jaffa psychiatrists per se, there were spiritual leaders who helped people with emotional problems. Members of Jaffa society had a clear understanding regarding acceptable behavior in such situations. There had been occasions when people in power did take advantage of those they were helping. Just as he had read about some Tau'ri priests who victimized young children under their care.

"I will speak with Vala Mal Doran. I have had an odd feeling about Vala's state of mind for the past few weeks. I would not be surprised if we were not aware of the all the complexities involved in the Thomas and Vala situation."

Mitchell said. "Thanks for taking that on Teal'c. I consider it a personal favor and I think we all feel that way. I'll approach the General when or if we decide an official inquiry is necessary."

Daniel protested. "But Teal'c, when I spoke to you about Vala's changed behavior you dismissed my concerns. And now you say you've been worried yourself. I'm confused."

"Daniel Jackson, I fear that you are often confused about Vala Mal Doran. You are very important to her. If Vala was changing her actions to suit you I did not want to interfere. I thought that perhaps the stress and tension I felt in her was caused by her attempts. And I, like Sam, thought that soon you would realize that you didn't actually want her to change."

"Hey guys, how did you all know before me that I would want "my Vala" back?"

No one answered except Mitchell who muttered "Are you kidding? Do you think we're blind?"

Teal'c stared intently at Daniel for almost a minute before saying. "I am not one to advocate precipitous actions but I fear that you may regret your reluctance to act. I fear that you and Vala Mal Doran could have been happy together."

Daniel had no answer to Teal'c's comments; he just put his head down on his desk. With his right hand he picked up the closest book and proceeded to hit himself repeatedly on the head with the book. The rest of SG-1 left the room without looking back.

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Thomas had been working with military victims of PTSD [Post Traumatic Stress Disorder while Jason was involved with victims of abuse who exhibited signs similar to those of PTSD. Each man researched the work of other scientists in his field and they made contact at a professional seminar. As they shared the results of their research, Thomas having to leave out the whole being able to leave earth part, they became close friends. They hoped to be able to work together in the future though Thomas didn't expect it would ever be possible. But perhaps the Air Force might be willing to let him work with Jason and his patients.

Both men dealt with atypical groups of patient. Jason's patients were rescued child soldiers and children who had been sold into the international sex trade. Thomas's patients had suffered on other planets, at the hands of powerful and sadistic aliens, from having highly evolved technology used as instruments of torture, and other unimaginable horrors. His patients had the added stress of being unable to share their experiences with anyone not involved in the SGC program.

Thomas became convinced that there were similarities between their patient groups. Their experiences were so beyond the pale of 'civilized" behavior that it took extraordinary people to be able to grasp what those experiences entailed. And it would take extraordinary psychiatric skills and tools to help them.

Both groups of victims had to come to grips with the feeling that they were responsible for what happened to them, that they deserved what happened to them and that they were guilty for actions they committed while they had no control over themselves.

When SGC team members broke down under the influence of alien entities, or were unable to resist mind control, or had to leave friends behind on the other side of the galaxy, they felt guilty. SG-1 wasn't the only team that encountered horrifying, dangerous and extraordinary situations while off-world. Just knowing that there was an off-world and that the Star Gates existed were unique stressors. The "normal" world couldn't even begin to understand the reality lived by Thomas's patients, and that "normal" world couldn't be allowed to know that their reality existed.

Jason's children had undergone experiences that people in the "normal" world simply refused to understand. Accepting the facts about such atrocities was beyond difficult and for some people facing the existence of such pain in the world was too much to process. Denial became necessary for their emotional survival.

As Thomas learned more about what went on throughout the galaxy he was intrigued by the Goa'uld. The experiences of the hosts seemed incredibly parallel to those of Jason's children. The hosts and the children were forced against their will to participate in acts of violence, depravity, forced to sometimes main and kill their friends and families. He hoped that he would be able to use the hosts who survived in some way that could help those children. Initially his idea was that they could share their experiences with the children, they could be mentors, they could convince the children that it was possible to recover from their experiences, to become whole again. Eventually Thomas had to give up on that idea but he resolved to find some way of using the hosts to help the children, he just wasn't sure how it would work.

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Teal'c approached Vala in the Commissary where she was eating a snack with Thomas. It was after one of their early morning meetings. Today she had worked with Jason and Thomas on the procedures that would need to be developed for the project. It would be tricky to reveal certain alien technology without letting the outside world realize that it was alien. Dr. Lee had been working with Jason. He and Sam had experience with presenting phony engineering breakthroughs to the scientific community. It had been a lot less fun than discussing Kant or Socrates with Thomas while Jason glowered at them from his desk when they went off on one of their tangents that they both enjoyed. Now that she was spending more time with Jason Vala had decided that Daniel wasn't like Thomas at all. Daniel was Jason and Thomas was her. That made her laugh until she cried, especially when Thomas agreed with her!

"Vala, I do not want to interrupt you however your team is very concerned for you. I am here to ascertain if it is necessary for us to speak to general Landry about your relationship, as a patient, with your therapist."

Thomas looked at Vala in amazement and anger. "You told me that you have explained everything to them. I can't imagine what they must think about me. You haven't been fait to them or to me. What the hell is going on here Vala?"

"Thomas, I'm so sorry and I'm sorry Teal'c. I meant to tell them, it just got complicated. The longer I waited the worse it got. The worse it got the longer I waited."

"I'll go see the General and arrange for a meeting with SG-1. I'll go right now; I won't even finish my Jell-O."

As she finished her sentence she flew out of the room.

"I will tell the team to expect Landry to contact us." Teal'c nodded at Thomas and turned to leave the room.

Thomas stood up and said. "Teal'c please don't be too hard on her. Vala cares so much about what all of you think of her that she sometimes makes errors in judgment. I can only hope that you love and care for her as much as I do."

"Indeed, Dr. Graham."

Teal'c reported his conversation with Vala to SG-1 and explained that they would be meeting with the General about their concerns. Teal'c repeated Vala's apologies to them and to Thomas. He also told them what Thomas had said about understanding about Vala's lack of good judgment.

They were all pleased when they received a call from Walter almost immediately. If possible, the General would like to see them in his office in fifteen minutes.

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"General Landry, it seems that it is time for you, okay us, to meet with SG-1 and talk about Thomas's project."

"Don't you want Thomas to be here when you explain?"

"No, I think it will be better if it is just me." Vala didn't mention that she was afraid that Thomas would reveal some of the less savory aspects of their project. Thomas had been creative when he worked out how the ex-hosts could best help the damaged children.

Vala's face became ashen as Daniel, Teal'c, Sam and Mitchell entered the office. Landry had them sit around the small conference table in the corner. He had asked Walter to bring in coffee and food for the meeting. Landry knew that Dr. Jackson would need the coffee and Vala the food. Walter put the tray on the table and left the room. Vala was standing next to Landry's desk looking nervously at the four people at the table. Landry remained seated at his desk. Vala grabbed a large cookie from the tray and began pacing.

Mitchell spoke up. "General would you be so kind as to explain exactly what is going on here?"

"Vala, do you want to start?" She shook her head no.

"Well, then why don't I start and you can leap in when ever you feel like it."

The General began. "A few weeks ago I was sitting in my office, minding my own business, when I heard Walter talking to Vala. She wasn't exactly talking, it was pretty close to yelling." He smiled and continued. "I can see by your faces that you have heard something about Vala's meltdown, though perhaps not the complete story."

"It seems that Vala has been working on acquainting herself with 'Tauri' culture. It turns out that it can be difficult for our alien friends to comprehend the many differences between all of Earth and the part of the world where we live, the United States."

Teal'c nodded and said. "That was a problem for me also. This planet is very diverse. More so than the planets with which I am familiar."

"Exactly, what I said to the General after we calmed down."

"We calmed down?" Landry smiled at Vala and said "Vala had learned about some disturbing situations that exist elsewhere on Earth and she wanted to make sure that the Air Force was not involved in similar practices. Vala was particularly concerned, and rightfully so, that those of us at SGC did not condone what was happening."

The team looked even more confused. Daniel looked at Vala with a pleading look in his eyes. Ever since Teal'c had told them about them meeting with the General he had been worrying about what Vala's problem could possibly be that she didn't want to share it with them or more specifically him. His imagination jumped from some unimportant trifle that they would laugh about to her leaving SGC to her being sick with some unspecified but deadly malady.

"It started with hearing and then reading about the "Lost Boys of the Sudan" and continued on to "child soldiers." I had to know if you people stole children from their families, forced them to kill and maim, and controlled them body and mind. I was watching a documentary on the television and I did have a "meltdown". I couldn't breathe until I knew that you were not monsters."

Looking into Daniel's eyes Vala said. "I went looking for you Daniel. But I couldn't find you, I was so scared that I had been fooled, that there were people on your planet as evil and twisted as the Goa'uld. That those people were here." By the end of her words she was crying, all of the emotions that had spilled out of her when she first confronted Landry were back in full force.

Landry saw that Vala was in no condition to speak so he carried on the story. "I thought that it was important that Vala know the truth. I had to confess that we did know about the existence of "child soldiers", and that they existed in many parts of the world, too many parts. But that we didn't create or use "child soldiers". I'm ashamed that I had no better answer as to why we allowed it to happen than "It's complicated". After a while Vala stopping hitting me and crying on my shirt. I did forget to send you a bill for cleaning my shirt, Vala."

Vala was no longer crying and managed to smile at the General's joke.

"But she continued to have a lot of questions about good and evil, explanations of human behavior, etc. I felt that she should talk to someone with some expertise in the matter. I knew that Dr. Graham had a non-Air Force colleague who was actually working with "child soldiers" and children sex slaves. So I asked him to spend some time with Vala and talk to her about good, evil, God, existentialists, free will and so forth. I hoped that it would help her understand our complicated planet."

"I was never his patient. We talked as friends. Thomas explained about doctor patient relationships and he asked me to make sure that everyone understood that he wasn't my "shrink". And I did explain it to people."

With a completely flat voice Daniel said. "To other people. But not to us. Why?"

"You have to believe me. I felt so stupid about attacking the General and after I spoke to Thomas I felt that everything was under control, that you didn't need to know how ridiculous I had behaved."

Sam asked "So what happened, Vala?"

"Thomas continued to help me with understanding your culture, that there were so many cultures on this planet and so many complicated relationships between them that I could study for years and still have so much more to learn."

"He also was helping me learn how to become more "normal", more "rational", less of a fruitcake. I wanted you to think I still could help SG-1. Adria is gone, as are the Ori, and with passing time my special contacts will dry up, even my skills as a thief will atrophy with non-use."

Vala made a low aside to Daniel. "I wanted you to not annoy you so much. I tried very hard, but I'm afraid that I didn't do a very good job."

"So what was the big secret about your reading books and spending time with some goofy "shrink"?

"Mitchell, Thomas had done some reading about Goa'uld hosts, actually ex-hosts like me. He was hoping that there was a way to take advantage of their experiences to help the children who had been abused in a manner similar to a host. I was happy about the idea that some good could come of my pain, that I could do some good in your world. If I was no longer needed on SG-1 I might be needed by someone else."

"Vala Mal Doran, I still do not understand why you did not tell us."

"Teal'c at that point I didn't want to say anything until I decided whether I would help Thomas and Jason. And they didn't want to talk about the project until they received final approval from the President. I didn't want you to think badly of me if I didn't agree to work with them. And the longer I waited to tell you the harder it was to tell you. I hope that makes sense to all of you. I am so, so, so sorry. I wanted to handle it on my own and not have to turn to you to solve all my problems. I know that my selfish behavior is trying."

Daniel looked intensely at Vala "I think that there are a few issues that we need to discuss as a team and as friends." Sam, Teal'c and Mitchell each nodded in agreement. "I am very happy that you will be able to help those children. But I also don't think that you are going to get to leave SG-1 all that easily." Daniel smiled as relief crossed Vala's face and the tears started again.

Everyone was now smiling at Vala, except for Teal'c. That surprised Vala. She had expected him to understand her behavior better than the others.

Frowning Teal'c asked her "Vala, I have spoken to some of your "gang" about this project. I am concerned as to why the "Lunch Room Ladies" think …"

Teal'c was interrupted by Mitchell's snort of laughter. "Lunch Room Ladies". Who they hell is that."

Vala answered. "The people who work in the Commissary refer to themselves in that manner. Is there something wrong or funny about the name? It is how they are referred to when we play team sports."

Mitchell was still laughing. "Yes, it is funny. I suggest that you ask them to explain it to you. And what do you mean by team sports?"

Teal'c answered for her. "We play basketball, twister, Boggle. And there is the Pinochle World Series."

Daniel reminded Teal'c that he had been talking about something that troubled the "Lunch Room Ladies".

Vala quickly explained "They are what you call worry warts. Thomas has explained that dredging up memories of my time as a host may be slightly traumatic. It might cause a few nightmares but I think that I can handle any problems that might arise."

Teal'c looked unconvinced by her assurances. But the rest of the team were crowding around Vala. They were berating her for not telling them, all the while smiling at her smiles. Daniel took her hands and told her that he was glad that there wasn't anything wrong with her and that he had been worried. He repeated how happy he was that she would be able to help the children and told her how proud he was that she had agreed to work with Thomas and Jason. He pulled her to him and hugged her. While she was in his arms he whispered into her ear that they would have to talk about the changes that she thought he wanted her to make. He let go and said "Hey guys, we can get all the gory details tomorrow when we go on our mission. It should be an easy stroll through the woods, and as we actually stroll through the woods we can talk."

Mitchell groaned. "Don't jinx us Jackson. Our stroll will most likely end up a mad dash through an enchanted forest trying to escape sure and sudden death."

The mood in the room was relaxed and everyone seemed pleased with how the meeting had concluded. Daniel went for the coffee and Vala sat at the table and began to devour the food. Mitchell sat down and started fighting her for the last cookie. All was well within the world of SGC. Or at least it appeared that way.


	9. Chapter 9

As SG-1 walked out of Landry's office Mitchell told them tonight had to be a "team" night if there ever was one. They all agreed. Now they had to choose where to go and what to do. Daniel felt that they should definitely go off-base; he was feeling badly that Teal'c and Vala had to spend so much of their down time basically confined to base. Sam also felt guilty and agreed with Daniel. Mitchell didn't care where they went or what they did as long as they ate. As usual, he and Vala were all about the food! Teal'c, as usual, expressed no opinion. Vala, however, had very strong opinions. She was vehement; they needed to be someplace where they could talk freely as there was much they had to discuss. That meant no public places. Daniel and Mitchell offered their apartments but Vala didn't like that idea either. She had a plan. They would stay at SGC. One of the VIP suites had a very large, nicely decorated and comfortable living area which they had used once before for a special team get-together. Vala had her "gang" check out that it was unoccupied and then change the room's status to unavailable. Mitchell would be in charge of bringing the food and Vala the liquor. The VIP suites were exempt from many Air Force rules. Some powerful visitors were not willing to do without alcohol. It was perhaps a grey area when it was Air Force personnel, off-duty or not, drinking on base. But SG-1 had attended their share of boring cocktail parties in that suite while still in uniform and they were expected to drink with the guests. Another point in favor of staying at SGC was that no one would need to drive home after the evening's festivities, festivities that might continue late into the evening. Because of the time difference between planets the mission wasn't scheduled until noon the next day.

They all returned to their quarters to shower and change out of their uniforms. Pulling on clean jeans and a tee shirt Mitchell made calls to three take-out restaurants and a bakery and then headed out the door. One of the cleaning crew who was part of Vala's "gang" had a brother-in-law who owned a catering business. He had connections who could supply beer and liquor at wholesale prices. These same suppliers usually furnished the booze for the VIP suite and therefore had delivery access to the main Cheyenne Mountain facility. It was delivered to the front gate and then brought down to SGC by Vala's Lunch Room Ladies.

Vala was relieved that she had finally told her team the truth. Even if Teal'c thought that she hadn't told the complete truth. In fact, she hadn't come completely clean, but Vala decided that she could reassure Teal'c at another time. Vala trusted him to keep quiet tonight until she got a chance to explain. Teal'c didn't know anything concrete; he just had one of the Tau'ri "gut" feelings that Vala wasn't being honest about her work with Thomas.

Daniel had been so nice to her, he wasn't angry at her and he actually seemed pleased about her involvement with Thomas and his work. Vala refused to think about what Daniel could have meant when he told her that they would have to talk about the "changes that she thought he wanted her to make." He was hugging her when he said it and Vala was pretty sure that he had kissed her temple before pulling away. True or not she decided to believe that it had happened. Daniel had told her that he was happy that she was going to help and that she wouldn't be "leaving SG-1 so easily." Vala knew that Daniel meant that since she was changing her behavior SGC was no longer so eager to get rid of her. Obviously Daniel wanted to tell her how those changes had made him value and respect her. Since Daniel approved of the work she did with Thomas then he must approve of how Thomas had helped her makes those changes.

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Vala was out of the shower, wrapped in a towel and tearing frantically through the outfits in her closet. Vala wanted to show SG-1, especially Daniel, how "Earth" normal she could look and act. To start she had decided to put her hair up. Thomas had explained to her why it was a better fit for her face and projected a more sophisticated and grown-up look. Thomas hated her pigtails. She was surprised to find that Jason liked them and that he and Thomas had argued about it. Thomas was concerned about her future meetings with the project researchers in Washington. The first one was scheduled in a few weeks so Thomas had taken Vala to the mall and picked out some clothes and accessories for her to wear. Thomas was very proud of the results. Vala was so excited about going on an outing that she didn't pay that much attention to the clothes. Vala was more interested in the Food Court and the Godiva Chocolate Shop. In spite of what Daniel might think Vala was not consumed by her appearance, she enjoyed getting new clothes but would have given them up happily if Thomas had let her stop at a local church fair and bazaar they passed on the way back to SGC.

Vala moved on to underwear. Sam had introduced her to Earth lingerie on the Victoria Secret web site so she already owned an assortment of nice bras and panties. But Thomas thought that it would be fun for her to shop in an actual store rather than on-line. Vala did had fun even though she couldn't get Thomas to speculate on which items were most likely to appeal to scientists. The store clerk was trying to figure out the relationship of the two people in the store. The guy was gorgeous and the girl wasn't bad looking either. But it sounded as if she was picking the underwear out for another guy. She tried to pretend that she wasn't listening to the customers; you overheard a lot of strange stuff when you worked in a lingerie store. The first item the woman chose was a beautiful pink silk teddie. She insisted that it would be comfortable and less restrictive than a bra and panties under her uniform, especially when they ended up having to run with their backpacks on or dodge bullets. That image was a little too strange for the salesgirl so she moved out of earshot. Thomas warned Vala that she should be more careful about what she said in public. Thomas had allowed her the pink teddie but the rest of the lingerie was beige or white. He wanted Vala to go with what he considered "classics" in terms of clothes.

Team nights were always casual but tonight Vala wanted to show how well she had learned the lessons Thomas had taught her about acceptable behavior. He had told Vala that she should look pretty and feminine but not sexy. The people that she would be interacting with would have been told that she had been taken for the slave trade and been rescued. It might make them uncomfortable to think of her as being sexually attractive. Pretty was good, everyone responds better to pretty people. And you wanted them to think of you as feminine and soft, that you hadn't been so harden by your awful experience that there was no hope for similar victims to recover and lead normal lives. Thomas said that he was sure she knew how clothes helped you take on the persona needed to manipulate the mark in any good con, that her clothes would be a tool she could use to accomplish worthwhile results.

Thomas refused to buy her leather pants or jeans. And none of the clothes could be black; it was a harsh and depressing color to many people. He wouldn't let Vala buy any overly bright clothes either. In the end they were able to agree on a number of simple, conservative outfits. Shoes were another issue of contention. Vala tried to talk him into three or four inch Blaknik heels while he wanted her to wear low heeled Mary Janes. They were able to

reach a compromise, Vala didn't get any stiletto hooker shoes but she didn't have to wear ballerina flats.

When Vala and Thomas returned from the mall she tried on her clothes to show Jason. He seemed to approve of her choices [actually Thomas's choices but he accused Thomas of dressing her to look like Audrey Hepburn. Vala asked Jason if that was a bad thing, he brushed off her question with a smile telling her looked very nice. Vala had seen some of the price tags on her clothes and was concerned about Thomas buying them for her. Jason assured her that Thomas's parents were quite wealthy and he could easily afford to buy Vala anything that he liked. Vala told Thomas that she was grateful for the expensive gifts but that of all her presents she had most enjoyed the pirate Pez dispenser. Jason kissed her on the forehead and told her that made it all the more fun to spend lots of money on her.

Vala was starting to get a little nervous about all of her "adult" changes. Daniel had kissed her on the temple, Jason has kissed her on the forehead, and Thomas hadn't ever kissed her anywhere. This not being a sexual object was a new but possibly overrated experience.

Vala decided to wear her favorite new dress, the fabric was very soft and comfortable and it was the most colorful one that Thomas had let her buy. She wasn't exactly sure how they categorized women's clothing here on Earth, it was very confusing, but she knew there was a difference between dressy and casual. Thomas had told her that her green dress was definitely casual. After slipping into her shoes, low heeled suede Jimmy Choo pumps, Vala was now ready for "team night". It might have been better if Vala had talked to Sam before she had gotten dressed. But she trusted Thomas and Jason's taste not realizing that causal didn't always mean the same thing to different people. A casual outfit for lunch at the Four Seasons wouldn't necessarily be the right casual for "team night".

Vala certainly knew the value of an "entrance", she had carefully planned out her first steps through the Stargate when she came looking for Daniel. But tonight she was excited about spending time with her friends and wasn't thinking about such things. She didn't want to manipulate anyone; she just wanted them to approve of the new her. Vala wanted to get there early so she could make sure that the drinks she requested were there. The "Lunch Room Ladies" has suggested that in addition to the usual beer and liquor she serve Jell-o shots. Vala wasn't quite sure what they were but anything with Jell-o should be tasty.

So Vala was already in the suite when Teal'c arrived. He came into the room with a pile of DVDs in his arms.

"Val Mal Doran you look very nice tonight." Teal'c was often unclear about what types of clothing Earth women wore where and when. He simply thought that Vala looked nice and that was what he told her.

Mitchell arrived next, carrying pizza boxes, white containers of Chinese food, and bags of food with what looked like barbeque sauce soaking through the bottom. There was also a bakery box which would be full of brownies, chocolate chip cookies and coconut macaroons. Sam had finally convinced Mitchell that he didn't need to go to all of the trouble of baking cookies himself, that SG-1 was willing to make do with store bought. He put the food down in the kitchen area and stated to organize his feast. He turned on the oven and put the pizza in. The Chinese food went into microwavable serving dishes. He was trying to figure out what to do with the barbeque when he caught sight of Vala. Without even thinking he whistled.

"Hey, Vala, baby! You are looking good! You are just prettier than a June bug in August."

Vala heard Mitchell whistle but she wasn't sure if he was trying to get her attention or what. Then when he compared her to a bug she was even more confused. He was smiling at her so she figured that the bug thing wasn't an insult. And he had used the word pretty which was what Thomas wanted.

Daniel heard Mitchell's whistle as he came down the hall, so he had a little warning before he saw Vala. As he entered the room he saw Mitchell staring at Vala. For some reason Mitchell was comparing her to an insect which sounded odd. Daniel took a closer look at Vala and understood the whistle. She looked beautiful but Daniel always thought that she looked beautiful. There was something very different about her, Daniel thought that sophisticated and elegant was probably the best way to describe her. It actually made him feel a little nervous until she grinned at him. It made him feel that the true Vala was still there hiding under all the glamour.

"Daniel, you have to see what I have for our celebration! One of my "gang" suggested them. They are called Jell-o shots. Doesn't that sound like fun? They come in the most amazing colors and taste just like Jell-o. I already had two."

Mitchell looked at Vala intently and said "Daniel you may want to get her to ease off the Jell-o." He assumed that Daniel know how potent they were. Mitchell had noticed that they had been made, not with the usual vodka, but with Everclear, a brand of 190 proof grain alcohol. Vodka was usually only 90 proof and Everclear has almost no taste or smell, even less than vodka. He resolved to stick to beer.

Vala had a tray of brightly colored plastic shot glasses in her right hand which she brought over to Daniel. He took a red one and swallowed it in two gulps. You have to sort of slurp the Jell-o out of the plastic cup as it collapses. Daniel thought that they actually were fun. He usually wasn't all that crazy about the taste of alcoholic drinks but these did taste just like jell-o.

Sam came in carrying a stack of board games in time to see Daniel doing a Jell-o shot. She figured if he was up for it so was she. After putting the games down she grabbed a blue shot. She was pleased to discover that they weren't all that strong, she could barely taste the vodka. Sam raised the shot glass to her mouth at the same time as she looked at Vala's outfit. She wasn't exactly shocked, just a little surprised at how (for lack of a better word) grown-up she looked. Vala usually gave off a slightly naïve, though never innocent, childlike aura. Tonight it seemed to be missing; Vala was happy and excited but perhaps lacking some of her usual spark.

"That's a gorgeous dress Vala. I don't think that I've ever seen it before. Is it new?"

Vala twirled around to show off the dress to Sam.

"Isn't it great? Thomas bought it for me to wear when we travel to Washington next week. He bought me other dresses, too. And new shoes and underwear. Come feel the fabric Sam, it is so soft."

She had walked over to Sam and held out her sleeve. Sam took it between her fingers and said. "Wow, Vala. That does feel soft. Do you know what it's made of?"

"Jason said that it is a" Vala closed her eyes and tried to remember exactly what he had said. "Cashmere Sea Foam green Vera Wang tunic dress." She opened her eyes and asked Sam. "Does that sound right?"

Before Sam could answer Mitchell yelled over. "Don't I get a chance to feel it?"

Vala started in his direction but Daniel stepped close to her, caught her arm and held her back. "Don't encourage him." Vala laughed and went over to Mitchell with her arm held out.

Sam quietly said to Daniel. "Those are very expensive clothes that Thomas bought for her. Do you think that we should be concerned?"

Vala, having overheard Sam, called over. "Jason says that Thomas is very rich and that he wastes money on things a lot worse than me."

"Is that what he said, a lot worse than you?" asked Daniel.

"Not in so many words but I know that was what he meant." Vala smiled showing that she wasn't insulted. "I like Jason; he is what Thomas calls 'honest to a fault' Jason tells me the truth."

Vala had come back to stand next to Sam and Daniel. In a conspiratorial whisper Vala said to Sam. "I have to show you what I have under my dress."

Before she could finish Mitchell, keeping a close eye on Daniel, said "I think we would all like to see or at least hear about it." Mitchell was pleased to see Daniel give him the evil eye.

This time Sam told Vala to ignore Mitchell. Vala continued "I found this thing that is much more comfortable that separate pieces of underwear, it is called a teddie."

Sam almost choked. "That might be more comfortable but usually they are a little fancy, not to say skimpy, to wear on an off-world mission."

"Maybe you're right Sam. I'll check it out tomorrow."

Daniel looked over at Mitchell to see if he was going to say anything. Mitchell worked on looking like the picture of innocence.

After her one Jell-O shot Sam stuck to beer as did Mitchell. Teal'c took one shot and said that it was pleasant but that one would be sufficient. Having gone through most of the pizza and ribs they were sitting in front of the large screen TV. Teal'c, Sam and Mitchell were on the couch. Looking slightly out of focus after a few too many tasty Jell-O shots Daniel was sitting in a large overstuffed armchair to the right of the couch and Vala was on the floor in front of him. Sam wasn't sure what Thomas would think of Vala sitting on the floor in her Vera Wang dress. The Jimmy Choo's had come off after the second Jell-o shot. Vala looked comfortable leaning back against Daniel's legs and they both looked relaxed. The two of them actually looked relaxed to the point of falling asleep or passing out. Before starting a movie they had tried playing Scrabble, but since Thomas had been helping Vala with her reading she and Daniel destroyed the rest of the team in short order. Vala was pleased that Daniel had been looking so closely at her during the game. She was convinced that he was impressed with her increased vocabulary. She would have been less happy if she knew what he was thinking. Daniel was impressed by her ability playing the game, but he wasn't happy at her behavior. Vala should have been bouncing up and down in her chair as she creamed Mitchell & Sam. She was excited but not 'Vala excited'. Daniel felt like an idiot thinking that he was upset that she wasn't exuberant enough over winning a silly game.

The team was munching cookies and watching the movie. Vala was eating cookies and drinking Jell-o shots, Daniel was concentrating on the Jell-o. Teal'c had brought "Star Wars" but also a selection of 'B' science fiction movies that he and Vala enjoyed. Tonight they had picked "Forbidden Planet". Before it started Vala and Daniel tried to explain that the movie was based on Shakespeare's play "The Tempest". By then the two of them had drunken enough Jell-o to not even notice that they were saying the same thing. The rest of the team ignored them and started playing the DVD. After twenty minutes or so, Vala started wiggling around trying to get more comfortable on the floor. Sam was waiting to hear Daniel yell at her to stay still or move when he shocked everyone, including Vala. He reached down and picked her up under her arms, somehow he sort of swung her around until she was on his lap.

"There is plenty of room on this chair there's no reason for you to sit on the floor." Daniel acted as if this was perfectly normal behavior for him.

Neither one of them was 'feeling any pain' as Vala settled on his lap with her head on his shoulder. They kept their eyes forward looking towards the screen but after five minutes Sam casually looked over to see them both asleep. When the movie was finished Teal'c, Mitchell and Sam quietly cleaned up the mess. No one wanted to wake Daniel and Vala. Mitchell claimed that after that much Everclear they wouldn't be able to wake them until tomorrow at the earliest. He also claimed that while they may not remember everything that happened they wouldn't be hung over since Everclear didn't have any nasty flavorings or colorings. At least that had been his experience in College. The freshman party drink of choice in his dorm was called a Delaney Dagger. Delaney was an upper classman who would buy the Everclear. You bought a brand new plastic trash can, lined it with an oversize trash bag, added Everclear and frozen orange juice and lemonade concentrate. After stirring you added blocks of ice and if you felt festive you could cut up orange slices and toss them into the mix.

Sam refused to leave Daniel and Vala behind when they left. Mitchell picked up Vala and went with Sam to drop Vala off in her room. Sam wanted to get Vala out of her clothes, no matter how drunken Vala might be Sam knew that she wouldn't want to mess up her dress. And Sam couldn't imagine sleeping in a dress that she knew had to cost over $900.

Teal'c half dragged and half carried Daniel to his room. He had no intention of undressing Daniel Jackson and simply dumped him on his bed. Though he did take off his glasses and put them on the dresser.


	10. Chapter 10

SG-1 was sitting around the table in the Briefing Room while Daniel explained the details of the mission.

"We have heard that there is an old temple and library that may contain information about the existence of Ancient technology that we can use against the Priors, there is also reference to a "Power Source" that sounds as if it might be a ZPM."

Sam asked "That takes care of you Daniel and I suppose Vala. What about the rest of us?"

"The Gate is close to the ruins but further down the river there is a large settlement. Rumors say that the people on this planet have fought the Priors. The word is that somehow they not only resisted Origin but convinced the Priors to leave and never return. We need to discover if that is true and if it is how they accomplished it and if they willing to share their knowledge."

Mitchell spoke to Teal'c and Sam "Establishing any future alliances will be handled by Daniel or someone else with his level of expertise. The three of us will be on a simple recon mission. Our job is to try and confirm the reports, assess the situation, and report our findings and recommendations."

Landry stood up as did SG-1. Their gear was waiting for them in the Gate Room. Vala and Daniel's packs were stuffed with dictionaries, reference books, Ancient texts, laptop computers as well as old fashion pencils and paper.

In the Gate Room as they put on their packs Vala looked around with a peaceful look on her face. She smiled at each member of SG-1 and sighed.

Daniel asked "What's going on with you Vala? You're acting a little odd, even odder than usual."

"I just want to remember how it felt, my last trip through the Gate "she answered.

They all looked shocked. Sam was the first to speak. "What do you mean your last trip? Vala is everything okay?"

Vala looked startled and then guilty. She berated herself for making such a stupid slip. "I just meant my last trip before I go to Washington with Thomas. We aren't sure when we will return. I'm sorry; I certainly didn't mean to say it that way."

"Come on you guys. Let's get on with the fun!" She smiled broadly and bounced up the ramp walking backwards through the Gate.

Daniel smiled to himself as she disappeared from view; he loved to watch her when she stepped through the Gate that way. Vala looked so pretty, so happy and confident, as if she was in complete charge of her life. As if she knew exactly where she was going and therefore had no need to look ahead.

Teal'c continued to look concerned about Vala's behavior; he was convinced that she was, if not actually lying, certainly not telling the complete truth. He decided that he would speak with Samantha Carter about Vala Mal Doran. He had hoped that Vala would seek him out but she had not.

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SG-1 came through the Gate into a small meadow within a grove of trees. There was a river running through the woods with a wide path on both sides of the water. You could see what might have once been a large stone building on the top of a small hill not far from the Gate. There was a well worn path leading into the trees in the direction of the ruins. The weather was warm but not too hot. The planet was beautiful; the grass was green, the sky blue, and the clouds puffy and white.

Daniel looked as if he was going to speak and Mitchell yelled "Jackson, do not jinx us. Don't you dare mention the sky, the grass, the weather, none of it! Nada!"

Sam and Vala laughed as Daniel glared at Mitchell. He started to complain "There is no scientific evidence for curses or …"

"Jackson, do I have to come over there and hurt you?"

Daniel actually smiled at Mitchell. The place was so pleasant that he couldn't bring himself to argue.

"Come on, troops. Let's get this show on the road. Teal'c, Sam and I will contact you by radio in three hours. If we don't reach you within four hours we'll head back here. Enjoy yourselves kids. And Daniel, in case we come back early, don't forget to put a sock on the doorknob if …"

Daniel looked blankly at Mitchell as if he didn't understand him.

Mitchell continued "Come on Daniel. I know that you went to college."

"I attended Oxford University, and we would place a copy of the Kama Sutra, in the original Sanskrit of course, in front of the door"

Sam was smiling at their exchange and told Teal'c that she would explain it later. Sam waved goodbye at Vala and Daniel as the three of them headed down the path along the river.

Walking up the path to the top of the hill Vala and Daniel were pleased to see that the building wasn't in as bad a shape as they had feared. It was difficult to tell the style of architecture, nothing looked familiar to Daniel. The original building had been made of grey stone but it was hard to tell how large the building had been as only one story remained. The doorway was blocked by felled trees and rocks but it appeared that it was blocked to prevent animals and/or children from entering. Vala took off her heavy pack and began pulling aside the debris.

"Come on Daniel, we should get inside. No time to waste. There are books and artifacts waiting for you." As the last branch fell Vala picked up her pack and headed through the now cleared entrance.

"Don't you want to check out if it's safe before you…?" Daniel didn't bother to finish his sentence and followed her in.

They were in a large open room which was well lit by sunlight. The ceiling was very high and there was a skylight of sorts. It was an opening cut through the ceiling, not a hole created by the collapse of the building. It hadn't been abandoned completely though it was difficult to tell how recently it had been occupied. Directly under the skylight there was a large work table of sorts and three stools. On one end of the table there were neat piles of stone tablets, also runes written on the walls and a variety of markings and symbols were carved into the floor.

Vala had walked to the back of the room and called out. "Daniel! There is an alcove back here. You have to check it out, there is another smaller skylight and under it there is some sort of fireplace pit. And whoever was here last

left firewood stacked against the wall plus torches for the wall sconces." She stepped further back and started to laugh almost hysterically. "You are so not going to believe this, my dear. There is a bed back here. It is more than big enough for two. Come look! There is a sort of mattress, leaves and feathers wrapped in some sort of

rough fabric. I think that I love these people!"

Daniel made his way back to where Vala stood. As he got close she said "Never mind, I take it back. They didn't leave any food! Or pillows!"

Looking around at the accommodations Daniel was surprised that he found the little living space charming. The headboard on the bed was carved with small flowers and leaves. Vala had, of course, jumped onto the bed.

"It doesn't bounce but it is surprisingly comfortable and much better than a tent. Daniel, please don't tell me that one of us has to sleep on the floor."

"I think there is enough space for the two of us. I wasn't as wasted last night as people thought, I may be a little fuzzy on some of the details of the evening, but I do know that we fell asleep together on a chair."

Vala also remembered. She had been quite drunk but she had learned early to be able to function even when most of your brain was awash in alcohol. Without thinking she jumped off of the bed and went over to Daniel and gave him a quick kiss on his cheek. Vala pulled away immediately and was surprised to see that he wasn't blushing.

A little taken aback Vala headed to the main room. "Come Daniel! We have tomes to peruse." That made him laugh and he joined her at the worktable.

They had set up part of the table as a work area, arranging laptops, reference tools, paper and writing implements. Vala and Daniel had established a system for this type of situation. Vala started an inventory and Daniel took a brief look at all the items to see what languages, familiar images, symbols, etc. caught his attention. This was one time that they never fought; they quietly worked side by side with no friction.

Vala got the feeling that something was watching her; a little apprehensive she looked up to see Daniel staring at her. "Is there something wrong? Did you hear something Daniel?"

He continued to stare. He seemed to be looking at her neck of all things. Vala felt a little disconcerted. "Daniel! What is it? You're making me nervous."

"That's pretty funny, me making you nervous. I was just thinking about something Mitchell said the other day about your uniforms."

"Daniel, why would you talk to Mitchell about my clothes?"

"Sam had been telling us about Rose and how you had your uniforms custom tailored. He was speculating about Air Force underwear."

Vala was stuck speechless when he mentioned underwear. She had no clue where this conversation was going.

"Mitchell contends that you wouldn't wear military issue underwear with a new and improved uniform style. He thought the only question was what color."

Daniel continued to stare at the top of Vala's uniform. He was smiling at her obvious discomfort. He saw that she was getting angry but he was sure it was because she didn't know how she should be reacting.

"Well Daniel I cut the suspense and you can report back to Mitchell. Today it is red!" She pulled down one of the shoulders of her top exposing bright red straps. She was tempted to unbutton the top of her uniform and show him more details. But she felt off-kilter and simply pulled her top back up and stuck her tongue out at Daniel. Vala wasn't sure how she felt about his returning smile. Strange things were happening, things that she hadn't expected to happen. It was great that they fell asleep together on the chair, it made her feel close to Daniel, a closeness that she could hug to herself in her mind no matter what happened to her next. Vala wanted this mission to be "normal" at least what was normal for the two of them. That was also supposed to be a memory she could hold on to.


	11. Chapter 11

The weather and scenery continued to be gorgeous, Teal'c, Sam and Mitchell were enjoying their walk along the river. There was no hurry, they expected to finish their part of the mission and return to the Gate before Daniel was ready to leave. Though both missions were strictly preliminary visits Daniel would assuredly find it difficult to tear himself away from his ruins. So the three of them weren't hiking towards the settlement but more like strolling.

Teal'c broke the quiet by asking Sam, "Do you not think that there is something troubling Vala Mal Doran? I know that she is trying to change so that Daniel will come to his senses about his love for her. But I am a little concerned about how marked the changes have been and how quickly accomplished. This Thomas seems to like Vala and he has been very helpful to her, as well as very generous with his gifts. I have no reason to distrust him and General Landry thinks very highly of him. Of course his work with the broken Tau'ri children is most worthy. However I feel that he is pressing Vala very hard to become "normal" or his idea of normal."

"Don't you guys think that Thomas is interested in Vala because he is "interested" in her?" Mitchell put air quotes around the second "interested". "Men usually don't buy expensive clothes and lingerie for women who are just friends."

Teal'c responded. "I do not think that Vala is "interested" in any man who is not Daniel Jackson. Perhaps she is not aware that on Earth expensive and personal gifts from men have such a meaning."

Sam laughed. "I am sure that she is aware. It is not just on Earth that men behave in that manner. In fact I don't think that Dr. Graham is "interested" in Vala in a sexual way. He may flirt with her but I think that he is well aware of her love for Daniel and he has no problem with it. I also think that he may be using her desire to change for Daniel to his own advantage. I'm just not sure what that advantage would be."

Mitchell chuckled to himself when both Teal'c and Sam put air quotes around "interested". He was sure that Teal'c did it in order to make Mitchell laugh. He wasn't sure if Sam was even aware that she was doing it.

Sam looked at Mitchell. "How much do you know about this project? After all Vala is on your team. Has the General given you any idea of what is involved on Vala's part? Will she be off the team temporarily? Or maybe permanently, if she gets heavily involved in the project? Is it possible that this may be her last trip through the Gate? Exactly where is she going with him next week?" The questions spilled out of Sam in a rush. She impatiently waited for Mitchell to answer.

"The General hasn't been as forthcoming as I would have liked. Dr. Graham has a number of very important supporters. The First Lady is quite interested in helping those children. It isn't an Air Force project but Dr. Graham is an Air Force consultant and has been working with SGC team members with PTSD resulting from physical and psychological trauma involved with off-world activities. Jason is actually the lead psychiatrist; he has been working with the child soldiers and children sold into the international sex trade for a few years. It turns out that the groups have some similar and almost parallel experiences. The children are forced to take part in horrendous activities against their will, beaten and worse into submission by evil irresistible forces, which make them feel guilt for actions for which they are not responsible. Both groups are unable to discuss what has happened to them with people who can't even imagine such horror. SGC members are unable to discuss any aspects of their work with anyone outside. Guilt and emotional isolation are powerful forces. Though not as common lately, many SGC members have been taken over as hosts, possessed by a variety of alien entities, forced to betray their friends by forces beyond their control, etc. Soldiers who have withstood torture on Earth are devastated when alien technology can so easily cause them to capitulate. It is very difficult to come to terms with your actions whether or not it is truly your fault." His voice became charged with anger and suddenly sounded sad and depressed.

As she heard the changes in his voice Sam remembered when Mitchell had to relive the horrible memory when he bombed a convoy of innocent refugees. It had happened because of an intelligence error, but Mitchell felt responsible. The Galarans had needed a memory similar to that of the murder of Reya Varrick in order to calibrate the Goa'uld memory device they had been working on. A device they wanted to use to create an education tool that could transfer knowledge from person to person by implanting their memories. Mitchell had personal experience with feeling guilt for an action that wasn't your fault. As far as Mitchell was concerned he was the one that had dropped the bomb which killed those people and he was the one who deserved to carry the guilt. Sam knew that he must empathize with the patients in the project and would obviously support anything that could help them.

"When Thomas read about Jason's work he thought immediately of the experiences of Goa'uld hosts. He had read about hosts in his work with SGC personnel. When Vala came to Landry with her concerns about child soldiers, etc. he decided that Thomas would be a good person to talk to her about all her questions. The General didn't feel competent to even start to discuss those issues. When Thomas read Vala's files and met with her he decided that her experience, being under the control of Qetesh for ten years, having the snake extracted and then being able to regain her own personality and create a new life was unique. He was impressed and inspired by Vala's story. He knew that there had to be a way that he could use her to help his patients."

Teal'c broke in. "So he was interested in how he could use her and her suffering to help him."

"That was pretty much it. But Vala was happy with the idea that she might be able to help others and to use her pain to accomplish something good."

Sam asked. "Do you know how he plans on making use of her? And what's with the makeover?"

"Thomas hasn't shared any specific details with General Landry. I know that Thomas wants to bring her to Washington to meet with other researchers and potential supporters. He felt that she needed to be educated, taught to dress and behave properly so she would be better able to interact with the people in that world, people who could never find out about SGC or the Goa'uld. Jason has been working with Vala on her cover story. She will need to convince experts in the field that she is who Jason and Thomas say she is. Vala will be introduced as a victim of the international sex trade, a woman who was sold by her parents when she was thirteen, and had to endure debilitating sexual humiliation and violence."

Teal'c said. "I think that will be a difficult role for her to play, she will need to relive horrors that she has worked hard to put behind her. I know that since Vala Mal Doran has been at SGC her nightmares have gotten less frequent and less disturbing. She still sleeps very little in order to postpone dreaming but I think things were starting to get a little easier for her. Perhaps her involvement will be good for Thomas and Jason and their patients but not so good for Vala."

Sam was taken aback by what Teal'c said. When Mitchell explained about the project she thought that it sounded as if it would be a good experience for Vala as well as a way of helping other victims of violence and suffering. Sam hadn't considered the toll it might take on Vala. And the idea of making major changes to Vala, in order to "sell" her as an appropriate victim didn't sound fair. Sam felt that SG-1 hadn't been fair when they applauded those changes with their encouragement.

Sam asked Mitchell again about how long Vala would be gone. All he knew was that she would be going off-base with Thomas next week and no one had mentioned how long she would be gone. There hadn't been any talk about Vala leaving SG-1 but Mitchell wasn't sure who would make that decision.

All three of them continued walking each with their own private thoughts. Now both Sam and Mitchell were feeling a little of the unease that Teal'c had been feeling. 


	12. Chapter 12

Daniel put down the stone tablet he had been looking at, stood up and stretched. "Vala, before I start checking out the runes on the walls I'm going to take the radio outside and check in with Mitchell. It's coming up on three hours since they left."

Vala looked over with a puzzled look on her face. Thinking to herself, since when does Daniel keep track of time while he's working, she replied "Sure Daniel. That's a good idea."

Once he was out of sight Vala crossed her arms on the table and laid her head down thinking to herself 'this is a fine kettle of fish'. Once again she had found the Earth phrase that was a perfect fit for her situation. All the while she had worked with Thomas, on what she thought of as her transformation, her hope and motivation was to please Daniel. And now that she was seeing results instead of making her happy it was depressing her. Recently Daniel had begun to treat her differently; it might appear to be a subtle change to others, but she knew him too well. He was more relaxed, he was teasing her and not getting as flustered by her flirting. Though she still wasn't sure what was going on with the whole color of her underwear conversation. It seemed to her as if he was actually interested, that he wasn't just trying to 'turn the tables' on her by making overtly sexual overtures. But that was something she would think about later. Vala hadn't expected to be upset because Daniel so clearly welcomed the changes, she hadn't expected to want him to regret those changes, to want him to miss the 'real' Vala. Thomas had been very clear why he wanted her to change, or at least appear to change. He had also warned her that she wasn't going to be able to make fundamental changes to her inner self by simply changing the clothes she wore, etc. That she should consider that if it took the appearance of changes for Daniel to fall in love with her then perhaps he wasn't the man she had fallen in love with. Vala didn't think that was exactly how Thomas had phrased it but that was pretty much the gist of the idea.

While they started their original studies Vala began to read and think and discuss a wide variety of topics and to enjoy these pursuits, Thomas had explained that developing her intellectual curiosity and learning the skills required for critical thinking was not making a change. He was simply helping her explore her potential, something that had always been a part of her but had been pushed to the side by her basic survival needs. She had always been highly intelligent exhibited by her success in surviving. Vala knew that Daniel valued learning, the desire to learn and dedication to learning, and she had begun to realize that she also valued those things and that she had discovered them in herself. Vala had hoped that pleased Daniel but was delighted to find that it pleased her. Boredom had faded as she threw herself into exploring the world of ideas. She now appreciated how Daniel had been able to use submersing himself in his work to ignore his pain and suffering and to avoid thinking about his emotional problems. Vala had developed a respect for this coping mechanism and started to embrace it for herself.

Later, as Thomas schooled her in how to 'behave', dressed her in different clothes, toned down the expressions of her natural exuberance for life; he explained that such changes were only a façade, a façade that he was developing for his own ends. If she felt this would help her with Daniel then Thomas would have no qualms about taking advantage of it.

Deciding that her current failure with Daniel was a continuation of the screw ups that were her life Vala lifted her head up off of her arms and put on her 'happy' face. She had gotten what she thought she wanted and shouldn't be surprised that it hadn't turned out as well as she expected. But she consoled herself with the knowledge that if they had ended up happy it might have prevented her from taking the risks involved in Thomas's project. If she had a reason to remain whole and sane then she wouldn't have agreed to participate in such a potentially dangerous undertaking. An undertaking that had the potential of helping people who could then help damaged children to recover. Vala could never forgive herself for her previous actions but she may have found a way to make up for it, and any possible sacrifices on her part would have little consequences, and any consequences would only affect her. Loneliness could be a benefit when it meant that you were the only one who had to be considered when serious decisions had to be made.

Vala told herself to stop whining and 'suck it up', nobody likes a crybaby. She would simply enjoy whatever happened between her and Daniel. She could hold on to the memories and ignore the fact that it had been Daniel and Vala, just not the 'real Vala.'

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"Sam, Teal'c, Daniel's on the radio."

Teal'c looked puzzled. Sam asked Mitchell. 'Are you saying that he contacted us? What's going on? Ask him what's wrong?"

"Jackson, what's the problem?" Through the static they could hear Daniel speaking quietly to Mitchell.

"He says there's no problem. He just realized that it was close to three hours since we split up so he figured he would contact us. Don't look at me! I don't know what's going on. Maybe the stuff in the temple isn't very interesting."

"It is highly unlikely that Daniel Jackson hasn't found anything of interest. He can spend a large amount of time on the most insignificant of items." Teal'c, seeing Sam's astonished look, said. "I tell only the truth. His obsessions can be quite boring to other people, surely you do not disagree Samantha?"

"No, I'm just sort of surprised to hear you say it Teal'c."

"I am not sure why you think that. I may be an 'alien' but I am a warrior not a 'geek."

Mitchell almost lost it; he hadn't laughed that hard in a long time. Sam looked at Teal'c, unsure if he was serious or actually trying to be funny. Teal'c gave her one of his inscrutable looks and then smiled at her. At that point Sam was unable to stop laughing. Sam and Cameron were almost in tears.

Later they were sitting on a hill overlooking a village. They hadn't seen many inhabitants but it appeared to be an unsophisticated, peaceful, charming small town. The river ran through the town and was crossed by numerous bridges. There were small parks and flower beds everywhere.

Mitchell commented "It reminds me of a miniature Amsterdam. Those may not be tulips but I wouldn't be surprised to see wooden shoes or windmills."

"It does not look like a society that could easily defy the Priors" said Teal'c. "Perhaps we are on the wrong planet. How should we proceed?"

"Let's set up camp and have lunch. We can talk about our options after we eat."

"Sounds good" said Sam.

Teal'c added "I concur."

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Daniel quietly made his way towards the back of the room. He saw Vala busily entering her hand written notes into the laptop and stopped. Daniel smiled to see how focused she was on her, or actually their, work. Whatever else he might think about Thomas, he was grateful how he had worked with Vala on what Daniel thought of as her education. Vala had so much practical knowledge, knowledge that had saved SG-1 more than once, but she hadn't had the luxury of acquiring knowledge and learning for its own sake. She had such a fascinating mind, it was always racing along at top speed, and if he was jealous of anything it was that he hadn't been the one to accompany her on the first steps of her journey.

Daniel was glad to see Vala's hair back in pigtails. He thought the hair styles she had been wearing lately looked too artificial. He had only recently realized that not only did he notice her hair but that he had an opinion about how she wore it. Vala wasn't wearing any makeup and as she concentrated on her work her forehead wrinkled in thought. She wasn't smiling, not her fake 'happy face' smile or her natural huge infectious grin. Vala's expression didn't look unhappy, just engaged with her work.

Vala or Sam would have laughed if they could hear what he was thinking. It took a lot more work to keep her "naturally" curly hair looking barely controlled by her pigtails whereas the sophisticated look was easy. And that "no makeup" look was difficult to both achieve and maintain. Sam had taught Vala some of her own "no makeup" tricks. Jack liked how unspoiled and natural Sam always looked. The important thing was that Daniel noticed how she looked and preferred that she look the way he thought was the 'real Vala'. There would be plenty of time down the road for Daniel to discover the truths about hair and makeup. Jack was just starting down that road with Sam.

Daniel must have made a noise which caught Vala's attention. He saw her put on her 'happy face' before she called out to him.

"There you are darling. I was beginning to worry that something had happened to you, that you had been dragged off by the phantom of the ruins. How is the rest of our merry band? Did they find anything exciting?" Vala knew that she was babbling but she couldn't help herself. When she first looked up and saw Daniel he seemed to be looking at her, really looking at 'her', with what appeared to be affection. This was a scary thought. Vala had finally given up on true love with Daniel and was hoping for friendship "with benefits". If he slept with her because he wanted her that would be enough. Later when she thought back on it she could imagine there had been love and affection. But gaining his affection now didn't fit her plan, it was too late.

"They are fine. In fact they are getting ready to make camp and eat lunch. They aren't sure how to proceed; they want to observe the village for a little longer before they approach the people.'

"That sounds fantastic! The eating part, I mean. Come on Daniel lets clear a space on the table and bulk up." As she spoke she started moving the items she had been cataloging to one end of the table. The she started rummaging through her pack for food. They weren't planning on a long stay so in addition to the standard MRE rations Vala had brought fresh fruit and chocolate. Daniel walked over to the table and sat on one of the stools. Vala jumped up and sat cross legged on the table in front of her stool. She had laid a scarf on the table and piled the fruit on it. Picking up an apple she grinned at him and took a huge bite. Daniel reached for a piece of fruit but stopped in mid-reach to watch her devour the apple. It made her nervous and she asked him what he was looking at. He looked away and picked up an orange.

"I like to watch you eat, Vala. I don't know if Thomas was giving you lessons on polite eating but I hope you never lose that look."

"What look are you talking about Daniel? The one that you used to describe as 'acting like you don't know where your next meal is coming from'?" And what are you grinning at Dr. Jackson?"

"So I like to watch you eat, get over it."

Vala wasn't sure if she wanted to laugh, cry or scream. Of course her plan to change for Daniel would start to work now. Just another example of her terrible timing. Vala had discovered early in her life that timing was everything, and once again she was proven right. Though hearing Daniel say that he hoped Thomas hadn't changed how she ate was a little odd. Daniel liked everything that Thomas had taught her that made her different from the 'old' Vala. She would have to add that to the growing list of odd things Daniel had said and done recently. A list she would, for now, postpone thinking about.


	13. Chapter 13

After finishing their lunch Vala went back to work at her laptop setting up her database for this mission's findings. Daniel was taking photographs of the runes on the back wall; later Vala would add the images to her database. Daniel had been impressed when Vala started developing a basic relational database of SG-1's off-world discoveries of texts, tablets, runes, etc. It was designed to interact with the existing SGC systems but she had added extras, customizing it for SG-1. Vala had also been working with SGC IT on a Goa'uld transliteration program. She seemed to have a natural affinity for computers. Mitchell said that pilots like Vala who could fly high tech ships had to understand math and computers. Vala had added that picking electronic locks involved high level math skills as well.

Daniel had once made the mistake of calling the database an inventory system, Vala's snort of disgust at his ignorance was followed by an attempt to explain what it was and what it wasn't, why it was important that he understood the differences, etc. When Vala started in on 'set theory' he had a disturbing flash on what Jack must have felt while he listened to Daniel's equally impassioned, and possibly equally boring, lectures. He was focused on that thought when he realized that Vala had stopped talking. Daniel tried smiling as if to show that he was not only interested but actually understood what she was saying. At which point she punched him on the arm muttering curses as she walked away. While empathizing with Jack it occurred to Daniel that he and Vala were alike in some ways, though not always in good ways. Daniel was beginning to think that she was developing into as big an intellectual snob as him.

As Daniel took the photographs he would glance over at the table and watch her work. His behavior last night had pretty much "sealed his doom." Daniel no longer denied his love for Vala, he had faced his true feelings and it was liberating. He hoped that Mitchell's crass remark about the sock on the doorknob would turn out to be prophetic, and prayed that that rest of SG-1 would stay away from 'their' ruins for at least one night.

Continuing to photograph the walls Daniel enjoyed reconstructing the mental process involved in his acceptance of the reality of his loving Vala. When Daniel had woken up this morning he had no problems remembering the night before. He hadn't really been very drunk; he had been in full control of his faculties. When Daniel had pulled Vala into his lap he knew what he was doing, he had crossed his personal Rubicon and there would be no turning back.

In his bed the 'morning after' Daniel's mind was busy analyzing what had made him come to his senses. It had started when he noticed how strong a reaction he had to everyone's comments about Vala and who had made her so upset that she went to see Landry. Daniel was frightened that he actually was responsible for her 'meltdown' and the more he denied it the more frightened he became. It was painful to think that he could have seriously hurt her. At that point Daniel still believed that her teasing and flirting was just a way to amuse herself when she was bored. When Vala acted as if she really wasn't bothered by his apparent rejection and annoyance it had convinced him that her behavior was only intended to embarrass him.

When Sam yelled at him and Mitchell for being so quick to blame Vala, reminding them about how often she had put herself out there for SG-1, took chances with her life, saved the team and helped save earth. Daniel felt guilty but then Sam had said something worse. Sam said "She acts like its one big joke but anyone can see how much you hurt her." He had often daydreamed that Vala was serious but until Sam said that about Vala being hurt by his reaction Daniel had dismissed them as never to be realized fantasies. Just as he was trying to take in the idea that there was any chance that Vala wasn't playing with him Mitchell decided to tell him to stop being so annoying since everyone knew that he loved Vala. Daniel realized that Mitchell had been talking about Vala's underwear in order to goad Daniel into a jealous reaction. It had worked but he still refused to admit his feelings to himself.

Mitchell he could ignore, but Teal'c and Sam really knew him and what they said about him not being happy that Vala had changed set in motion the first serious contemplation of his feelings in years. He had, for so long, actively avoided any attempts at introspection that Daniel was ill prepared for his emotional breakthroughs. The resulting epiphany, the discovery that he did love Vala, made him laugh. Daniel hadn't felt so lighthearted in years. In fact Daniel felt happy. He was happy that he was able to admit that he loved Vala, and for the moment that was sufficient. Daniel hoped that Vala loved him, but he knew that he truly cared about someone else's well being and happiness more than his own. He had opened himself up first. Lost emotional control, without being assured that the other person loved him in return.

The fear of unrequited love did rear its ugly head quite soon. Selfless love was all well and good but Daniel quickly admitted that mutual selfless love would certainly make him happier. Daniel wasn't sure if he trusted his own judgment about Vala's feelings. But he was encouraged by the fact that Teal'c and Sam were certain about her feelings. Daniel was encouraged the most when Mitchell repeated what the janitor had said. "She likes Thomas, but everyone knows that she loves Dr. Jackson."

Daniel decided to let his subconscious work on the 'does she love me' issue on its own for awhile and focus, for the moment, on enjoying being in love.

Daniel laid the camera on the table. "Vala, I'm going to check in with the guys and see what their plans are for tonight. What do you think about eating now?"

"That's fine. You talk to them and if they aren't on their way back I agree that we should eat".

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"Well, Teal'c, Sam, what do you two think we should do?"

Sam replied. "We've set up camp and had lunch so why don't we take a stroll through the town and see if we can get the lay of the land."

"I concur, Samantha Carter."

Picking up their now lighter packs they headed down the path to the village.

Sam said to Teal'c. "Does this remind you of someplace we've been before? Not this place exactly it just seems a little familiar for some reason."

Mitchell said. "It reminds me of a Disney cartoon. Everything about the town is cute and sweet and way too clean. They may not have advanced technology but it doesn't look or smell like they have animals."

The team soon had their first up close glimpse of a villager. They had seen them from afar and they hadn't looked threatening. The man was short and slight and was wearing some sort of leather jerkin, fawn colored pants and no shoes. His dark blonde hair, almost to his shoulders, surrounded a human looking face with what would have to be described as an impish grin. He held out his hands and reached for Sam's hands. Clasping her hands between his he turned to Teal'c and Mitchell saying "Welcome strangers."

Under his breath Mitchell said "Welcome to The Shire, minus the toe hair." Sam laughed and Teal'c glared at him.

They were standing in a large town square covered with grass and surrounded by flower beds. There was a large stone hall on one side of the square. The doors were open and inside you could see what appeared to be a slightly raised stage area at the far end with intricately carved wooden benches filling the rest of the room. The building was close to two stories high but there was no second floor. The hall was one large room and with a vaulted ceiling. There were skylights in the roof and the walls consisted primarily of large glass windows. It looked as if it was as close to being outdoors as possible and still be inside a building. The remainder of the town was made up of a few small stores, craftsmen's work shops, and a number of taverns with outside seating under wooden arbors covered with blooming flowers.

"Come with me. You must be tired, please sit and have a drink." The man walked towards one of the taverns and made them sit down at one of the tables. The tables and chairs were carved with flowers, vines and trees. A young girl came out of the tavern with a tray of mugs. The mugs were made of pottery and were brightly painted with designs similar to those on the table and chairs.

"This, dear friends, is Mya." He introduced the girl who had long blonde braids and what Sam thought of as a Heidi outfit. She was even shorter than the man but with the same smile and twinkling eyes.

Looking flustered the man said. "Oh, please excuse me, I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Jax. Please, please relax, drink."

"My name is Mitchell, my friends here are Sam and Teal'c." Mitchell picked up one of the mugs and took a small sip. "It takes like a cross between apricot nectar and orange juice." Mitchell smiled and nodded at Sam and Teal'c to drink.

Mya and Jax looked at Mitchell with curiosity but no fear or surprise when they heard Daniel's voice over Mitchell's radio.

"Mitchell, are you there? This is Daniel. We were just wondering how things are going with you guys. Actually what we were really wondering was if we should wait dinner for the three of you."

Jax said. "Please stay with us and eat. If they are not too far away please invite your friends to join us."

Deciding that there was no need for Jax to know exactly where Daniel could be found he replied. "Everything is fine with us, but we've decided to remain and eat in the village with our new friends Jax and Mya. We'll contact you before we head back."

Walking out of earshot Mitchell spoke to Daniel. "We have made 'first contact'." He explained what had happened so far and described the village. When asked about the villagers themselves he said "They seem nice, sort of a cross between a leprechaun and a Hobbit. Tell Vala 'bon appetit'. We may not be back until the morning so make the most of it."


	14. Chapter 14

"Vala, Mitchell says they're going to eat in the village and when they check in later they'll let us know if they are staying there tonight."

Vala looked up from her laptop. "So, do you want to eat now?"

"Isn't your back a little stiff from sitting on that stool for so long? How about we sit on the bed and lean against the backboard for a little bit. We can have something to drink before we eat."

Vala was getting a very strange feeling from Daniel, what Mitchell would call a "vibe". Just the same, her back was sore and she could hardly turn down a chance to get in bed with Daniel. She had a reputation to uphold.

"Okay. That sounds fantastic! We have water and more water or I could make coffee. I mean you could, I'm still a little shaky about that whole coffee ritual you go through."

Daniel started rummaging in one of the packs, pulling out an empty foam lined metal case they brought to take back fragile artifacts, tablets, books, etc. Vala had stood up and was stretching when Daniel put the case on the table. It made a clunk when it hit the table and didn't seem to be empty. Daniel grinned at her as he opened the case and took out a bottle of wine and two glasses.

"I don't know anything about wine but one of your friends in the Commissary suggested that you might like this. All I know is that it's red." He handed her the bottle leaving the glasses on the table while he looked for the corkscrew. "Is that alright?"

Vala stood there slack-jawed with the wine bottle in her right hand. Meanwhile Daniel had found the corkscrew and took back the bottle from Vala. He pulled out the cork and leaving it stuck on the end of the corkscrew, put it down next to the case. Daniel handed Vala the two glasses and with the bottle in his left hand he put his right hand around her waist and guided her toward the bed. Their sleeping bags were laid out on top of the mattress and the bed looked very cozy. The wooden headboard was covered with carvings of flowers and there was still light coming down through the skylight like hole in the roof. When they reached the bed Daniel turned Vala so that her back was to the bed, he removed his arm from around her waist and pushed her down until she was sitting on the edge of the bed.

"Wait here Vala. I'll be right back."

She was still in a state of shock. Not only was Daniel behaving in what she understood to be a 'romantic' fashion he seemed so calm and sure of himself. And he was enjoying her obvious confusion way too much.

Daniel sat the bottle on the floor next to the bed and walked over to the fire pit. There was a pile of firewood on the floor next to it. He laid a small fire and soon had it burning. Taking one of the torches from a wall sconce close to the table he lit it in the fire. Daniel replaced the now lit torch in the sconce and walked back to the bed. As the sun set the fire and torch would provide a minimal amount of soft light, he obviously didn't plan on using the light to read by.

After picking up the wine bottle Daniel sat down on the other side of the bed and swinging his legs around he sat against the headboard.

"Vala, where are the glasses? Come sit here next to me."

Vala gave him one of her brightest grins, scooted up on the bed and over next to him leaning against his shoulder. Obviously all the changes Thomas had helped her make had finally worked their magic on Daniel. For a brief moment she felt some sadness that he wanted her now, when she felt the least like herself. But love can make you do funny things and accept the imperfect if that's all that is offered. Once she left with Thomas there was no guarantee that the 'real Vala' would continue to exist so the imperfect would be good enough for her.

Daniel poured the wine into their glasses. Vala gave him a funny look when he completely filled them. He vaguely remembered that wine glasses weren't usually filled to the top like beer glasses. But he wasn't concerned with niceties at the moment. If they were going to drink more than one half glass of wine each it would be more efficient if they started with their glasses full.

Daniel slipped his arm around Vala and pulled her close to him while they started to drink the wine. Daniel had finished at least half his glass when he asked Vala to hold it for him, took off his glasses, leaned over and put them down on the floor next to the bed.

Vala couldn't keep her mouth shut any longer. "Daniel just what the hell is going on with you? You're scaring me. Now all of a sudden you want to seduce me? If I'd known this would happen I would have toned myself down years ago. I didn't really believe that it would work. But here's proof. A few cosmetic changes, nicer more adult hair and clothes, a little less exuberance, more appropriate behavior and now you want me! Well I've never been accused of looking a gift horse in the teeth. Or is it looking at the teeth of the gift horse. Whatever! Life is too short Daniel."

Daniel had started to look at her with a very serious expression while she spoke. Vala had this horrible feeling that she had somehow made him reconsider his actions.

"Come on Daniel. We have the wine and the bed. And the kids won't be home for hours. What's the plan?" The expression on his face was still so serious that she felt her heart dropping into her stomach.

"Well, I had planned to check out Mitchell's theory about your red underwear in greater detail, once I got you a little tipsy. But now I think that we have to have a small talk first."

Vala thought to herself, this is worse than I thought. Daniel wanting to talk didn't bode well for a night of wild and reckless abandon. Maybe he wanted to be sure that she didn't expect this to mean anything, that she wouldn't misread his intentions. Vala was getting ready to assure him that she was fine with a casual hookup when he began to talk.

"I'm not sure where you got this stupid notion about what I think of your new hair and clothes and the rest of it. I love that you are reading and discussing great books with Thomas, that you are discovering your intellectual potential, that you have taken a serious interest in life on earth the good and the bad and the horrible. I don't like your new hair, I love your pigtails. Some of the clothes are okay, but I hate it when you 'tone yourself down'. It was fun playing games last night but when we were beating the pants off of Mitchell you were too nice. There was no gloating, no teasing, no public humiliation, no threatening to tell Carolyn what a bad loser he was. I didn't fall in love with the 'new Vala light'; I fell in love with the 'real Vala.'

It had been a very long time since Vala had allowed herself to even contemplate someone loving her. Memories of her fiancée and their happiness had long disappeared into her nightmares. Vala was so happy that she couldn't decide whether to cry, or scream, laugh or a combination of them all. Then reality hit her in the stomach. If there was any chance that this, whatever it was they had, could work they had to be honest with each other and trust each other. Vala knew that she might be destroying her only chance at happiness but it had to be right for both of them. Vala had to give Daniel a chance to back out once she let him know what he was letting himself in for. Better to have it happen now than later.

Years later Daniel would consider what happened next to be the defining moment of their relationship. He also considered it more dangerous than any of the Ancient's tests of worthiness, for him the consequences of failing this test were unacceptable.

Vala pulled back, got up and sat back on her knees facing Daniel. "I want to tell you some things before anything happens between us."

By the look in her eyes Daniel realized that he would have to be completely honest. And that he would have to do it without any words. Words that he used to reassure, to prevaricate, to manipulate, to make excuses, to hide behind and worse.

Sitting perfectly still she looked him straight in the eyes. Vala knew him well enough to read what he was thinking no matter how he tried to hide.

"This would be the first time I've had sex since Qetesh was removed".

Daniel thought: _I believe you._

Vala: _He believes me._

"At least the first time voluntarily."

Daniel: _Life is unfair, but I don't feel sorry for you._

Vala: _No pity. Good! I knew that I loved this man._

"I was never a whore, Daniel. But I would have been if that was my only option. I had alternatives. My father had taught me a few tricks and the rest of my skills I picked up on the job. Believe me I was highly motivated and a quick study."

Daniel spoke out loud. "You were more fortunate than many. However, it doesn't matter."

He saw Vala stiffen in reaction to his words.

He continued. "Not 'it doesn't matter' as in 'there, there, little girl. It doesn't matter'. It doesn't matter as in you are no worse than anyone else but also no better."

Daniel reached out and put his hands on her shoulders. He looked a little apprehensive. This time it would be her turn to say the right answer.

"I am being as honest as I can, Vala. You know how self-centered I am. In my own twisted and selfish way I'm grateful for everything and anything that happened to you because it brought you here to me."

"Daniel, you trust me enough to tell me the truth no matter the consequences. You can't begin to imagine how rare that has been for me."

Vala place her hands on his shoulders and leaned in to kiss him.

"I love you Vala. And I know that you love me."

Vala thought for a few seconds and pulled back. "Daniel I do actually love you. But how do you know that I love you? You always said that I'm an insincere flirt; that I'll chase anything in pants and that you can't believe a word an emotional wreck like me says, so on and so forth."

Daniel laughed, leaning in to kiss her. After he kissed Vala thoroughly he pulled her down onto the bed so that they lay side by side in the soft shadows of the firelight.

"That's for me to know and you to find out." Daniel looked at Vala with a smug self-satisfied grin. "Remind me to explain it to you someday."

Vala decided that for the moment she'd much rather kiss Daniel. She would deal with 'someday' later. That 'someday' would probably be a good time to explain some things to Daniel about Thomas's plans.


	15. Chapter 15

_**As far as Vala not having had sex since Qetesh was removed I provide the following explanation/defense. I was never happy with the whole Vala and Adria thingy, but I especially didn't care for Vala sleeping with Tomin. In my mind either the Prior told him from the start that the baby was conceived by the Ori or Vala got Tomin drunk and convinced him that she had slept with him. When she told him that she was pregnant he married her. And then she used her condition as an excuse not to have sex. I read somewhere that Claudia wanted the writers to put in a scene where Vala explained that she hadn't actually had sex with Arlos [ The Ties That Bind and how she tricked him into thinking that she had. **_

After getting off the radio Mitchell joined Teal'c and Sam at the table. Jax sat in one of the chairs, smiling at the three of them.

"Can I get you some more to drink? Or perhaps a snack? Mya bring these good people some of our lovely fruits. We grow everything ourselves. Would you like to see our gardens? Mya girl, fetch some food for our guests." Jax hadn't taken a single breath between his sentences.

Mya went back into the inn and quickly returned with a platter of exotic fruits. There was a variety of sizes, shapes and colors of fruit which all looked delicious.

Mitchell said to Teal'c and Sam. "Well, we already drank the juice so we might as well take our chances with the food." As he spoke Mitchell picked up something the size of an apple that was the color of an apricot. Biting into it he said "Hey guys. This is fantastic."

While Mitchell ate the fruit Sam turned to Jax. "Do you mind if we ask you some questions?"

"Not at all. I just hope that I have answers. We are very simple folk here on our planet. We live in harmony with nature and want nothing more than to live our lives in peace." As he spoke Jax took a few deep breaths and made an obvious effort to relax.

People had started to appear in the village, two or three at a time, gathering in the Square. They greeted each other with smiles and kisses and headed to the various taverns in small groups. In what seemed like only minutes there were forty or fifty people in the town. Many of them sat at the outside tables. Others had gone inside and the sound of laughter spilled out of the open doors. Barmaids and waiters busily served drinks and platters of fruits. Soon music could be heard on the evening air. SG-1 had barely noticed as twilight had descended on the planet. Candles on the tables had been lit as were primitive street lights that gave a soft yellow glow to the whole village.

"Jax," asked Sam, "What is the name of your planet? And your people?"

"Sam is it? We just call it 'home' Sam. And our people are simply the people."

"Have your people always lived on this planet? On your 'home'?"

Jax looked around the village avoiding her eyes. "I'm not sure what you mean Sam. 'Home' is our home."

Mitchell took over the questioning, wishing that Daniel was here. He had noticed Jax had avoided fully answering Sam's last question. He had said 'is our home' which didn't address Sam's question if they were originally from this planet. "How many of you live here?"

"In our village? Not many, you see most of us here tonight." Jax gestured around the square and the taverns. "There are other villages throughout our world, but not many."

Mitchell had the feeling that though Jax was not exactly lying he was a little vague. He could certainly understand that they wouldn't want to tell strangers all the details about their world. He hadn't wanted them to know where Daniel and Vala were exactly. If rumors were correct and the Priors had been here they were probably quite wary of visitors. Mitchell wanted to ask Jax about the Priors but decided that he should wait until Jax was more relaxed.

"Jax, why don't we continue our talk later, after we've gotten a chance to meet some of your folk?" Mitchell looked at Teal'c and Sam for support. They both seemed to agree with his postponing the questions. Jax was obviously reluctant to answer some of them.

"Yes. Yes. Of course. We must go inside and eat our supper. You can talk to others of my people. Mya has arranged for rooms where you can sleep. It will be safe for you to leave your possessions there; perhaps you would like to see the rooms now. You can wash up if you desire." Again Jax was speaking non-stop.

"Sounds good to me" said Mitchell.

"Indeed."

Sam agreed. "I wouldn't mind a chance to wash before dinner."

Mya lead them into the building and up a flight of stairs in the back of the main room. That room was filled with long trestle tables and benches, a fireplace, and serving tables covered with dishes of food. On the landing at the top of the stairs Mya stopped. "I have set up three rooms for you. I am sorry but you are larger than most of our people so I had to be creative." She opened the door of the closest room and invited them in. Teal'c and Sam smiled and Mitchell laughed out loud. The room was large with floor to ceiling windows on the outside walls and there were vases and bowls of flowers on every surface. Mya had shoved three double beds together into one of the corners.

"I think that if you sleep across the beds you will be comfortable. Your other rooms are exactly the same as this one. I apologize if this doesn't work for you, I am sure that I can make other arrangements if needed." She looked nervously at SG-1.

Sam smiled at Mya. "Thank you so much. The room is lovely, I am sure that we will be most comfortable."

Mya smiled in return. "The other rooms are right next to this one. There is a small washing room at the far end of the hall. Please take you time and come downstairs when you are ready to eat."

Mya left the room closing the door behind her. The three team members looked around the room and at each other. Mitchell spoke up. "What do you guys think? Are we in La La Land or what? Could this place be any frelling cuter?"

Teal'c looked over at the beds and said. "I, myself, am pleased that Mya made such an effort to accommodate us. It appears to me that I will be able to fit all of my body across these beds with ease."

Sam said. "The individual beds aren't actually that small from head to foot but they are a little narrow for two. Unless they are very, very friendly."

Mitchell and Teal'c gave Sam a questioning look.

Mitchell said. "What the hell are you talking about Sam?"

"I was just thinking that Vala is on the small side so that she and Daniel won't need three beds if they stay here."

"Indeed."

Mitchell looked back and forth at the two of them. "Do you guys know something that I don't?"

He was surprised when it was Teal'c who answered. "It seemed obvious to me that Daniel Jackson intended a romantic interlude with Vala Mal Doran while on this mission. Did you not notice the bottle of wine he packed in one of his cases?"

"Not to mention the huge box of Godiva chocolates," added Sam.

"I was just ragging on him about making the most of the opportunity to be alone with Vala. But I wasn't serious; I just like jerking his chain. Well, fancy that! Daniel and Vala! At long last. Are you two sure? Daniel might have brought the wine for all of us, and everyone loves chocolate."

Teal'c said to Mitchell "When he pulled Vala onto his lap last night I knew. That was a significant and purposeful action on the part of Daniel Jackson."

"And you guys are sure that Vala would respond in kind? What about this Thomas fellow?"

Teal'c glared at Mitchell and replied, using air quotes "Everyone knows that Thomas is what they call "taken". Do you think that either Vala or Dr. Graham is capable of such a betrayal?"

"No, of course not. But Vala flirts with him constantly."

Sam smiled at him. "Vala flirts with you. Does that mean Dr. Lam should be worried?"

Mitchell eyes widened and he quickly changed the subject. Throwing his pack on the beds "I'll take this room. Let's stow our gear in our rooms and meet back here in twenty minutes."

Sam and Teal'c nodded in agreement. Sam commented as she left the room, "I certainly hope their washing room is cute."


	16. Chapter 16

Vala work up with a start. It had been many years since she had slept for more than a few hours at a time. Vala had the strangest feeling that she had actually slept through the night. There was sunlight on her face; she could see it through her half-opened eyes. Vala looked over to see if Daniel was still in the bed, she didn't want to open her eyes if he was gone. He had told her that he loved her last night when they were still sitting up and drinking wine, but there hadn't been a lot of talking after that, and certainly no rational discourse. And all women know that declarations of love made by men during sex can't be considered binding.

There was no body next to her in the bed. Vala tried to convince herself that he hadn't actually left her and that he didn't regret making love to her. But it was difficult. Vala opened her eyes and looked around the room to see if perhaps Daniel was making coffee or even working on a translation at the table. Refusing to abandon all hope she decided that he must have gone outside to go to the bathroom. She stayed in the bed with the sleeping bag pulled over her head except for a small opening for her eyes; Vala resolved to stay under the covers until Daniel returned.

After twenty minutes she couldn't stand to stay still any longer. Vala threw off the covers and attempted to locate her clothes. Her tee shirt and pants were on the floor next to the bed. Her jacket had already been off when they first got in bed to have their before dinner drink. Picking up her shirt & pants Vala walked over to the work table having remembered where she had left her red silk underwear. They had been playing Indiana Jones and the French Maid in front of the rune covered wall. Vala stuffed her clothes into her pack after pulling out a clean tee shirt and pants. Rooting through a small pocket she found her cache of non-regulation underwear. In case Daniel was having second thoughts Vala was going to stay calm and act as if nothing of any importance had occurred between them. But wanting to be prepared just in case of a miracle, Vala took out the blue lace teddie that matched Daniel's eyes. Vala was wearing the teddie and pulling up her pants when Daniel came in. He walked over to her after putting the radio and a cup of coffee down on the table. Vala had stopped in the middle of fastening her pants and stood absolutely still. Terrified, she made sure that there was no expression on her face. She waited to take her cue from him.

Daniel took her in his arms, bent her down until her back almost touched the floor and gave her a huge Hollywood kiss. "Nice underwear Vala. I was talking to Mitchell on the radio; let me tell you what's been going on with them." Daniel walked over towards the table saying over his shoulder. "I love you, Vala. I just want to make that clear."

Daniel turned around just in time. Vala ran towards him, jumped up, and wrapped her legs around his waist and her arms around his neck. They looked into each others eyes and kissed. He broke away first, set her on the ground, sat on a stool, pulling Vala down on his lap as if it was the most natural thing in the world.

Last night they had "gone to bed" early so it wasn't that late when they actually went to sleep. Daniel had fallen asleep first leaving Vala awake and replaying the last few hours in her mind. The first time they had made love the only word to describe it would be tentative. Not the most passionate or romantic of terms but accurate. They had confessed their mutual love but neither one was ready to lose control. Two seriously dysfunctional people, even if they are soul mates, can't let go of their pain that easily.

Vala told herself that Daniel was tender and sweet, but then admitted that it felt more like he was holding back. Vala was certain that Daniel loved her just as she was certain that she loved him. However, switching off years of coping mechanisms used to avoid commitment or attachment was proving difficult for them. The physical intimacy wasn't the problem; it was the fear of the necessary emotional intimacy. The sex wasn't a disaster; it was enjoyable and physically satisfying. But they both knew that something was lacking, they could feel the tension of their passion below the surface, but self-restraint is inimical to great sex.

Afterwards they lay next to each other on the bed naked. Turning to face Vala, Daniel said "Well, that …"

Vala filled in the blank "sucked".

They looked into each other eyes and started to laugh, soon they were laughing uncontrollably.

Daniel said "How screwed up are we. What other two people could declare their undying love and devotion only to go on and have mediocre sex."

Vala was almost crying, not because she was sad, but because the situation was really funny. She kept hitting him on the chest with her fists and the more they laughed the harder she hit him. Daniel was laughing just as hard, and then he grabbed her fists to stop her hitting. Once he had his hands wrapped around hers he stopped laughing. When they talked about it later they decided that laughing together did more to release their inhibitions than the sex. Which they also decided said a lot about how seriously messed up they were.

They rest of the night more than made up for the first round. They found their passion, repeatedly, and laughed a great deal.

Daniel had drifted off but Vala wasn't ready to sleep. Daniel had no problems missing meals, but she was starving. They had never gotten past the wine and ended up skipping dinner. The fire was almost out and the torches were fading, but there was enough light for her to find the cases where Daniel had packed the wine. Hoping that he had something to eat in one of them she opened them one by one. At last, success! In the last case Vala found a two pound box of Godiva chocolates. She had brought Hershey bars along with the fruit for their lunch but they were long gone. Grabbing an apple out of her pack with the chocolates under her arm she went back to bed. It wasn't the healthiest of dinners but Vala thought it was perfect.

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Teal'c and Sam headed for their rooms. Sam peeked into the washing room and spied what looked like a bathtub or sorts. She yelled "I call dibs on the bathroom. I'll yell when I'm finished."

Teal'c nodded at Sam and Mitchell yelled from his room. "Fine. No problem!"

Sam took put her pack on the floor and pulled out clean clothes and her personal bag of goodies she kept for such occasions. You never knew when you might run in to actual indoor plumbing and running water. So she liked to have a small stash of soap, shampoo and other frivolous trappings. Jack knew about it having enjoyed the results. She suspected that since Teal'c was pretty much all seeing and all knowing that he was aware of her secret. Mitchell not so much. Standing up with her clothes tucked under her arm she threw her pack onto the bed (or actually beds). It slid off onto the floor but she ignored it and headed for the washing room.

She closed the door behind her and looked around the large room; it was at least half as big as the bedrooms. And it was so much more than cute. The outside wall was floor to ceiling windows and there were two skylights. There was still some daylight streaming down through the skylights and lit candles were in holders attached to the wall. An actual bath tub was in the center of the room, it was a large rectangular tiled tub. It looked to her as if it had come from a Roman Bathhouse. There was a spigot and when she turned the handle warm water poured into the tub. The water had a slight mineral and sulfur smell which made her think of hot springs. While the tub filled she looked around the rest of the room. Once she had seen the bathtub that was all she saw. There was a wooden chest of drawers with a large pottery bowl and pitcher. Sam figured that you filled the pitcher with water from the tub spigot and used it to wash in the bowl. On the chest next to the bowl was a pile of cloths which Sam assumed were their version of towels. Next to the cloths there was a small carved wooden saucer holding a pink waxy ball. Sam picked it up and smelt a faint floral scent, guessing that it was soap she put her hand in the water and rubbed the ball. Sam was thrilled when it lathered in her hand. Continuing to look around she noticed a curtained off alcove, afraid to even think what might be behind the curtain Sam pulled it to the side. She would never make fun of Disney World again. Indoor plumbing! For a seemingly technologically backward planet they certainly had some delightful amenities. Being Sam she tried to figure out how they would have plumbing but no electricity. As she considered it Roma sprang into her mind. Of course, running water and plumbing can be delivered using existing natural power sources. The Romans used aqueducts, gravity fed water systems, windmills and water wheels were used throughout the world. That type of engineering didn't require electricity.

The tub was full and Sam slid into the hot water with a sigh of pleasure. As the water covered her body it occurred to her that twenty minutes might not be enough time, particularly if she was nice enough to let the guys take advantage of the facilities.

Ten minutes later, after forcing herself to get out of the tub, she dried her hair with a towel and put on her clean clothes. Feeling virtuous Sam opened the door and stepped into the hall. She knocked first on Teal'c's door and then on Mitchell's. When they both opened their doors she smiled and said. "I think that you should check out the bathroom. I guarantee that you will take back any and all bad thoughts you have had about these lovely people."

They looked at each other, shrugged and walked over to the room. They both went in the door and Sam heard "Indeed!" It was the loudest and most animated "indeed" she had even heard from Teal'c. Sam heard nothing from Mitchell and made the correct assumption that he had been struck speechless. Teal'c appeared at the door and was pushed out into the hall from behind, saying "Colonel Mitchell says the 'rank has its privileges'. I think that means he has use of the room first."

Sam and Teal'c smiled at each other and returned to their rooms. Sam had a feeling that Mitchell either sang or whistled while he bathed so she would be able to tell when he was out of the bathroom. Twenty minutes later the, now clean and shiny, SG-1 team members were standing in Mitchell's room discussing plans.

Mitchell was saying. "I think that they are hiding something but they have been very generous and I like that Jax guy."

Sam said. "I think that we should spend the evening with them and make contact with some of the rest of his people. I would like to have Daniel speak with them and recommend how we should approach them."

Teal'c added. "I agree with Sam. If they have truly prevented the Priors from forcing them to bow to the will of the Ori they may have much to teach us."

"I'll call Daniel and apprise him of the situation. I'll tell them to come over here in the morning."

"Perhaps Colonel Mitchell we could wait to speak to Daniel Jackson in the morning. I am sure if there is an emergency that he will contact us. I do not think that there is any need to disturb their dinner."

Teal'c, keeping his face expressionless, looked directly at Mitchell. After looking at Sam and seeing her slight nod Mitchell agreed. "Fine. That's fine. We'll call them in the morning then."

Teal'c said. "We can surely wait until they contact us."

Mitchell laughed saying. "Teal'c what are you? A chick? Okay, we'll wait. But I'll only give them until noon!"


	17. Chapter 17

Teal'c, Sam and Mitchell headed down the stairs, meeting a smiling Mya at the bottom.

"I hope that you found everything to your liking?"

Sam spoke up first. "Absolutely! All the rooms are lovely and I have definitely fallen in love with the washing room." Teal'c and Mitchell smiled in agreement.

Mya stepped closer to Sam and whispered. "The men are more likely to appreciate the drinking and card playing, but women always understand the true priorities of civilized life."

Quickly looking around to see if Teal'c and Cam had overheard Mya's words, not wanting to be accused of political incorrectness when she agreed with her, Sam raised her eyebrows and whispered back. "That is so true. I could tell you stories …" Sam stopped herself in disbelief. She had been about to tell Mya exactly what had been in her mind which involved SGC. What Sam was ready to say to Mya was that she was still surprised, when they returned from some of the grubbiest and dirtiest off-world missions, that Teal'c, Mitchell, and even Daniel could go directly to the Commissary bypassing the showers. They would sit and eat, talk about the mission, make plans for the evening, etc. She had to admit that they all they did eventually bathe. Sam had never said anything to them, she was afraid that they would call her a "girly girl". After Vala had joined the team Sam expected that she would give Sam a run for her money in a race to the showers. She knew that Vala would certainly have no objection to be called a "girly girl". However, though never too far behind Sam into the locker room Vala had to grab something to eat before moving on to any other activity. Dr. Lam had started to keep protein bars and chocolate in the infirmary. When the post-mission medical examinations took longer than usual Vala had to be fed, if only to preserve Carolyn's sanity. Early on the doctor had ordered a series of workups on Vala; she was concerned that she might have picked up an exotic parasite similar to a tape worm. Daniel assured her that Vala had eaten like that since he first met her on the Prometheus. Dr. Lam hadn't wanted to insult her by her tests but Vala had laughed. Vala's explanation was that she had a high metabolic rate and that having spent some parts of her life hungry she often found herself eating, according to Daniel, "as if she didn't know where her next meal was coming from." Vala added that it wasn't the most amusing insult she had even received, and assumed that hunger had been eliminated on Earth for such an expression to be used as a joke. Daniel had the grace to look embarrassed when the rest of the team and Dr. Lam glared at him.

There was a nice fire burning in the fireplace, the benches were full of villagers eating, cheerfully talking and laughing. As everywhere in the village the surfaces were carved with flowers and other plants, or painted with flowers and plants, or covered with vases and bowls of real flowers. The walls were painted a very light green, as if a few drops of green food coloring had been stirred into a pail of white paint. There were large windows on every wall which would, during the day, bring the outside into the building. In the evening the windows were covered with very sheer flowered material, simple panels of cloth that were pushed completely to the sides during the day. You wouldn't call them curtains; they were so sheer and delicate that they were simply wisps of bright colors over the glass. On the tables were pitchers of what looked like beer and mugs in front of every person. Jax was filling the mugs from a pitcher and looked up to see the team.

"Hello, hello! Welcome friends and travelers. Come over, sit, have a bite to eat. Meet my friends." Jax waved them over. Mya took Sam's arm and walked to the table with Teal'c and Cam close behind her.

Two villagers moved over to make room for the three strangers on the bench. The three team members sat on the bench in the newly cleared space. Mya placed steaming bowls of stew and empty mugs in front of them and a basket of bread on the table. Jax gave each of them a napkin and a large spoon as Mya filled their mugs.

Mitchell asked about the liquid in the pitchers and Jax explained that it was made of fermented grain. Sam tasted the stew, smiled and asked what it contained. Mya replied vegetables that they grew in their fields. Teal'c asked if they were vegetarians. As he explained his question they were shocked by the idea that humans ate other creatures. Jax introduced them to the other people at the table, a family of four consisting of a mother, father and two sons, three young men and one young woman. The father of the family was a farmer and his wife a teacher as was one of the young men. Another of the young men was a cook and the other men and the woman were also farmers. The young woman did not appear to be part of a couple but was friendly with each of the three young men. The team chatted with everyone at the table while they ate and drank. Mitchell declared that their beer was as good as any produced on his own planet, which pleased the cook. It was his recipe that they were serving tonight. Mitchell told everyone that he and his father used to make beer in their basement and started a detailed conversation with the cook about fermentation techniques. Sam discussed education with the teacher and Teal'c was soon deep in conversation with the young woman. They had established that the woman was not attached to any of the single men. In fact Mitchell's question about their possible relationships made the young woman laugh. One of the men was her brother and one her cousin. The team had stuck to their plan of not spooking the villagers with possibly disturbing questions. The villagers seemed eager to answer those questions that they were asked. The evening passed by quickly, the villagers were warm and welcoming, the food and drink delicious. After a few hours the villagers gradually finished their meals and faded into the night. Mya and Jax cleared the tables after refusing any help. Mya gave them candles to light the way upstairs and started to sweep the floor while Jax washed the tables. Both Mya and Jax wished them good night. Mya hoped they would be comfortable in their rooms and Jax said that he looked forward to meeting their friends. Mitchell had told Jax that the friend they had spoken to on the radio earlier, Daniel Jackson, would be joining them tomorrow. He explained that Daniel was a teacher and a student of other cultures, and if Jax had no objections he knew that Daniel would be interested in learning about the culture of his people. Jax smiled and assured him that everyone in the village would be pleased to speak with their friends.

Teal'c and Sam followed Mitchell into his room.

"Sam? Teal'c? What do you think?"

"Colonel Mitchell, I found the people quite pleasant and their hospitality quite welcoming. I will be interested to see how they interact with Daniel Jackson. He will have many questions for them and he is also very skilled at encouraging people of other cultures to share information with him."

"Sam? What about you?"

"I enjoyed the evening. I was surprised at how easy I found it was to talk with them. I found myself opening up to the teacher about my personal feelings."

Mitchell asked anxiously. "Do you think they were practicing some sort of mind control on us? I know that I was sharing some of my fondest memories of my father with the cook."

Teal'c assured him. "Though I too found myself discussing parts of my life with these people, I think it was because they seemed truly interested and were "easy to talk to"." He put air quotes around the phrase which made both Sam and Mitchell smile.

Sam added. "I wouldn't worry. I didn't feel compelled to talk. I would say that I simply felt comfortable talking with them. Tomorrow we should pay close attention to our conversations and express out concerns to Daniel. I trust his judgment."

"Sounds like a plan! Off to bed with the both of you. I'll be giving lover boy a call after breakfast." As they left the room Mitchell called out. "Good night, sleep tight; don't let the bed bugs bite."

Sam laughed, assuring Teal'c that there were no actual bugs involved.

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Sam was in her room, dressed and ready to, writing notes for her mission report when there was a knock on the door.

"Please come on in."

Mitchell and Teal'c came into her room. Mitchell said. "I just finished talking to Daniel; they should be here by lunch. I thought that we would eat breakfast and walk around the outskirts of town, maybe check out one of those vegetable farms."

"Sure. I'm ready for something to eat myself. Let's go guys."

They headed down the stairs into the main room of the inn. The room was filled with sunlight streaming in through the windows. There was a large plate of fresh fruit and a basket of rolls on the table. Mya came out of the kitchen with a pitcher of the fruit juice they had enjoyed when they first arrived in the village. She was smiling as she greeted them. "I am so pleased; you all look rested and ready to face the day. Why don't you take a glass of juice, pile some food on your plate and sit outside."

They filled their plates and headed outside. Mitchell muttered under his breath. "Could she be more perky? I hate perky." Sam frowned at Mitchell and gave him a small shove to his shoulder.

They sat under the arbor outside of the inn. Mya and Jax sat with them and ate their breakfasts. Finishing up their meal Mitchell asked. "Jax, while we wait for our friends to arrive would it be all right if we walked around the town and maybe out through the fields?"

"Of course. Of course. No problem at all. Please feel free to wander anywhere. You will be safe. If you like we would gladly have you leave your weapons and packs back in your rooms."

"Thank you very much. But Teal'c, Sam and I feel more comfortable if we have our equipment handy."

"That is fine, my friends. Please go wherever you desire. You may not see many of our people during your exploration, but they are there. Many of us are shy and if they didn't meet you at the inn last night they may be hesitant to make you aware of them."

Teal'c, Sam and Mitchell thanked Jax and Mya and headed off across the main square. Mitchell strolled towards one of the small bridges over the river heading out towards fields of flowers. Sam and Teal'c followed him keeping their eyes open for whatever might turn up.

"Daniel is going to meet us in the town square in about two hours. He'll contact us when they reach our camp."


	18. Chapter 18

Daniel was sitting at the table with Vala on his lap telling her what Mitchell had said.

"Teal'c, Sam and Mitchell spent the night at an inn and are going to walk around the area this morning. He wants us to meet them at in the village at noon. But he wants us to contact him when we reach the camp. They haven't asked them about the Priors yet. The villagers have been very friendly and welcoming but Mitchell thinks the people on this planet may be hiding something. I asked him what they were like and he said to imagine Disney World on crack and that they make Care Bears look evil." Daniel wasn't surprised that Vala seemed to get the references though he had no clue what Cam was talking about.

"And he wants us to give him a preliminary report on what we've found here."

"Daniel that may be a little tricky. How would you describe what we've found here? Nonsense, gibberish, highly sophisticated encrypted data, some sort of kludged together mishmash of folktales and history?"

"Let's eat and we can talk about it on our way to the village. It looks as if we'll have to settle for MREs. The wine, the fruit and, unbelievably, all of the chocolates are gone."

Vala got down off of his lap and started to pull their breakfast out of her pack. Vala never complained about the MREs. She couldn't imagine turning her nose up at eatable food. There had been days when she had forced herself to settle for the inedible.

Sitting side by side at the table, eating their breakfast, Vala began to tell Daniel what she had decided about telling the others about "them."

"Daniel, I have decided that we won't mention "us", you and me, to the rest of the team until after we are back on Earth. It might be a distraction and could interfere with the mission. If these people were able to rid themselves of the Priors it is important that we discover how they did so."

Daniel gave Vala a serious and almost angry look. Suddenly she felt sick. Vala realized that he hadn't planed on telling the team anything about them ever. She suspected that Daniel probably hadn't even thought about it at all until now. She had stupidly forced him to think about it and he was regretting "them", whatever "them" was.

Vala quickly stood up saying. "I'll get our packs set to go and we can head out anytime you're ready." She flashed him one of her biggest grins and started stuffing things into her pack willy nilly.

Daniel got up and went over to her. He took her hands in his and forced her to look at him. Vala pleaded. "Daniel, I am so sorry. Please don't be mad, I promise I won't tell them anything. No one needs to know."

"Vala, do you have any idea why I'm upset with you?" She shook her head and tried to turn away. Daniel put his hands on either side of her face and kissed her. Vala's confused expression made him laugh.

"You told me what you had decided we would do about telling the team. Don't you think it should be us deciding?" He smiled, kissed her on the nose and started packing the cases, boxes and packs. They would leave most of their gear in the building taking only their personal packs.

Vala was completely flabbergasted. Once what he had said sunk in she couldn't stop smiling. She would never admit it but she wanted to turn away and cry. But she couldn't let him have the last word.

"Okay. We can talk about it on the way, but no matter what "we" decide to do we won't want to embarrass anyone. So you have to keep your hands off me in public."

"Vala, I can't believe you. After all that chasing when you finally catch me you're embarrassed?"

Vala smiled in return but insisted. 'If you find that you must kiss me you'll have to pull me behind a tree, or into a closet, duck down behind the DHD, or …"

Daniel put his hands on her shoulders and pushed her back towards the bed. When the back of her legs hit the bedstead he said. "I can be a slow study. I'll need to practice finding acceptable places to kiss you." He pushed her backwards on to the bed holding on to her shoulders so they fell together ending up with Daniel on top of her body. He kissed her four or five times then stood up asking. "How about here?"

"Come on Daniel. Time to stop fooling around. Mitchell's waiting. He won't be happy if we're late."

Swinging their packs onto their backs they walked out of the building hand in hand. They continued on the path past the Stargate and on towards the village. The walk was easy but it wasn't always convenient to hold hands as they walked. Mitchell had estimated that it would take them at the most two hours to get to their camp. As they followed the trail alongside of the river every so often Daniel would practice pulling Vala behind trees and into the bushes.

Vala and Daniel also spent time discussing what they would say to Mitchell about the contents of the building. What they didn't discuss was what they would reveal or not reveal about "them" once they met up with their friends. As they approached the camp they stopped at the same time and faced each other.

"Daniel, I really don't think this is the time to tell …"

"I agree Vala. But only because I want to tell my friends how happy we are at a time and place when we can celebrate. We're not trying to hide anything or fool anyone; I will never hide how much I love you Vala. Now come behind this tree." Daniel didn't wait until they were behind the tree to start kissing Vala, not really watching where he was going the two of them ended up falling onto the ground at the base of said tree.

As they struggled back up to their feet Vala said. "Daniel. I think that we are actually giddy. I do so love that word."

"Vala, I think that the two of us deserve a little foolishness. No one knows what's in store for the world, let alone us. In the long run us acting silly for a few hours won't make a difference. I suspect that we'll calm down in a few days, or weeks, or years."

Hand in hand Vala and Daniel continued on to the camp outside of the village.

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Teal'c, Sam and Mitchell walked past field after field of flowers interspersed with vegetable gardens. Occasionally they would spot a cottage tucked close to the side of a small hill or inside a grove of trees next to a stream. The outside walls of all the houses consisted, for the most part, of tall windows. Just as in the village tavern it looked as if you would feel like you were outside even when you were inside the house. There were flower gardens all around the houses and a few of them had climbing flowers or ivy like plants growing up the walls to the roof.

When they saw people working in the gardens or outside of the cottages if they waved to the people they would wave back. But by the time the team reached the field or house the people had somehow slipped away. The one time they were able to get close enough to talk to someone before they left, the couple couldn't have been nicer.

The team approached the house expecting the couple they had seen from the road to be gone. This house was inside a grove of trees with a small pond on the right side. As usual there were flower beds close to the windows and this was one of the houses that had climbing plants and flowers running up from the ground to the roof. The man walked over to greet them. "Hello dear friends. We are so happy that you have come to visit us. Jax has told us of your visit to our village. My Sky."

Sky looked at them shyly and smiled. "Please come in to our home. You must be thirsty and tired you have walked quite a way from the village this morning. Perhaps you are hungry?"

Mitchell said to her. "Thank you kindly ma'am, I appreciate your kind offer. Though we are a little surprised that you're still here. So far the people that we've seen don't stick around for long."

Dax replied. "Many of our people are leery of strangers. We don't get many visitors. We are used to our own ways and have no interest in changing our lives."

Mitchell looking at Sam and Teal'c whispered "Priors?"

At Sky's insistence they entered the house. Once you were in the building it was just as they had envisioned it. Sitting on a carved wooden bench in a room surrounded by glass it felt as if you were still outside the front door. The effect of seeing the flowers growing up the walls, the flower gardens outside, and the grove of trees around the house through the windows was amazing. The five of them sat on a variety of chairs and benches. There was a table to the side and when Sky brought in a tray with mugs, a pitcher, a plate of fruit and a loaf some sort of bread she placed it on the table. There were also small plates and cloth napkins on the tray. Sam was reminded of past tea parties with her dolls and smiling at the memory she caught Mitchell looking at her closely.

"What are you thinking about Sam? You look happy."

"Just a childhood memory Cam."

"I bet I can guess. I had girl cousins who forced me to drink tea with a whole lot of dolls and stuffed animals more times than I care to remember."

Sky asked Sam. "What is this tea that you drink with animals? I thought that your kind ate animals?"

Together Sam and Mitchell explained childhood tea parties to everyone. Mitchell soon had everyone laughing at his descriptions of getting caught by his friends pouring tea for a pink unicorn. After glasses of juice and slices of what turned out to be closer to cake than bread Mitchell stood up, thanked them for their kindness and explained that they had to return to town to meet their friends.

"Oh yes, Daniel Jackson. Thank you for sharing your stories with us and have a nice walk back."

The three walked out the door and headed back down the path towards the village.

"Teal'c, Sam did either of you see a telephone or any other type of communication device in there? How did they know who we were or that Daniel was coming to meet us?"

They both shook their heads no. Sam replied. "I suppose Jax could have walked over last night after he finished in the inn."

Teal'c asked. "But why do they know that we eat meat? Isn't that an odd thing to mention?"

They were getting close to the village when Daniel called them on the radio. He and Vala were at the camp. Mitchell gave them directions to the village and told them to meet them in the main square.

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Daniel signed off and the two of them walked down to the village. They didn't hold hands and there was no tussling in the bushes. They both felt content just walking side by side secure in the knowledge of their love.

As they entered the square and saw their friends they moved slightly more apart. They found themselves being careful not to touch each other.


	19. Chapter 19

Vala and Daniel crossed the square to where Teal'c, Sam and Mitchell were standing outside of Jax's inn. Vala flashed her usual smile at the three of them. "Hi guys. Did ya miss me? I could have used some company; Daniel has been buried in a book or on his laptop ever since we got here. No fun at all."

Sam noticed that Daniel had a slight smile on his face when Vala said 'No fun at all' as if they were sharing an inside joke. She decided to keep an eye on the two of them. Something seemed just a little off between them. Teal'c cleared his throat and when she turned to look at him he raised his eyebrows at Sam and then looked over at Daniel and Vala. Obviously Teal'c was going to keep an eye on them too.

Daniel looked at the inn and said. "This is an interesting style of architecture. I don't recall seeing buildings with so much glass in what appears to be a simple agrarian society with little technology."

"High tech or not I'll tell you what they do have. Indoor plumbing, bathtubs and hot water!"

Mitchell explained "Sam is very impressed with the personal hygiene facilities in the inn. I can tell you that the food is good and the beer is great!"

Vala turned to Mitchell saying, "So how is it here in Stepford?" He laughed in reply and said "You have got to meet the people. They are way too good to be true. Ah, here comes Jax. Let me introduce you."

Jax had come out of the inn carrying a tray of mugs which he put down on one of the tables under the arbor. "Come, come. Sit down. Have something to drink. Let me call Mya she will bring you food. This must be Daniel Jackson. Mitchell, who is his lovely friend?"

Mitchell introduced Vala. Jax gave her a quizzical look. "Welcome my dear. Are you also from their planet?"

Before Vala could answer Mitchell replied "She is with us. Vala is a member of our team who works with Daniel, translating books, runes, interpreting records, studying the history and stories of people in order to help us understand other cultures."

Jax continued to look at Vala as if he knew Mitchell was covering something up. Vala stared at Jax looking perplexed and then it was if a light turned on in her eyes. Mya came out with plates of bread and cheese stopping when she saw the two newcomers. Mitchell introduced Daniel and Vala and the whole team sat down at the table. Vala immediately started to eat. The first thing Sam noticed was that Vala had sat as far away from Daniel as possible, which was odd. Then Sam noticed that Daniel was watching Vala eat. There was no expression on his face as he watched her. But it looked as if he was working hard trying to keep a straight face. Daniel also looked less tense then he had in months, he almost looked relaxed. A relaxed Daniel and a Vala not trying to sit as close to, if not on top of, Daniel could only mean that they had slept together. Thinking about how she would tell Jack she smiled. Exchanging glances with Teal'c she knew that he knew that she knew what was going on with their two friends.

Mya came up to them at the table with a basket of rolls and said. "Daniel and Vala I have made your room ready. Would you like to go up and leave your possessions there? It is up the …"

Mitchell broke in. "Room? You mean rooms don't you?"

Jax and Mya looked questioningly at Mitchell and then at Daniel and Vala. Jax replied. "We are so sorry. We are not familiar with your culture. Do your partners not share a bed?"

Daniel tried to clarify the question. "What do you mean by the word partner?"

Mya smiled shyly at Daniel. "When a couple chooses to be close to each other, to spend all their time together, are in love, perhaps marry and have children. Do your people not do so?"

Sam and Mitchell spoke at the same time. "Yes, we do."

Mitchell added. "But they are not partners."

Mya looked embarrassed. "We are so sorry, we do not judge you. It is just that our people do not have sex together unless they are considering such a relationship. Of course not all partners are able to remain mates for life. Staying together is very difficult but also highly prized among us."

Mitchell nodded saying. "It is that way with us."

Teal'c, Sam and Mitchell turned to stare at Vala and Daniel. Mya gave a small cry of dismay. "I am so sorry my children. Daniel and Vala, you were hiding your happiness from your friends. Please forgive me for my blunder."

The three of them continued to stare at Vala and Daniel. Mitchell finally asked angrily. "Do you two have something you want to share with us? Something that you haven't already told Mya and Jax?"

Vala looked at him saying. "I think that we should discuss this amongst ourselves."

Mitchell gave her an angry stubborn look. Vala whispered insistently through tightly clenched teeth. "Now!" Turning her back on them she headed out to the square and sat on a bench near the river.

The rest of SG-1 followed after her. Daniel sat next to Vala and took her hands in his. He said something under his breath which made her laugh. She replied. "No, under this bench would not be acceptable."

The other three stood in a circle around Daniel and Vala. Sam and Teal'c were smiling but Mitchell looked pissed.

Mitchell spoke first. "Okay. Spill! What's the story with you two?"

Vala spoke before Daniel could reply. "That isn't really the most important thing right now. Yes, we had sex. Yes, we are in love. Yes, we are very, very happy. Yes, we did plan to tell you but we never got the chance. Can we move on now? Please."

Sam kissed Daniel on the cheek and gave him a hug. "I am so happy for you Daniel."

Teal'c smiled at both Daniel and Vala. "Indeed. I agree with Samantha Carter."

When he said that Vala jumped up and hugged Teal'c with her arms tight around his neck and her feet dangling a few feet off the ground. Teal'c removed Vala from around his neck and kissed her on the forehead as he put her down. Sam had come over to the two of them and gave Vala a tentative hug. "Daniel is very fortunate to have someone who loves him as much as I know you love him." Vala returned her hug and whispered in Sam's ear. "I hoped that you would be happy. You mean so much to Daniel." As they stepped apart Vala added. "Plus, you can convince Jack that there would be no problem with having team members "involved". You two certainly appreciate how people in love can work together." Sam smiled at Vala's air quotes around "involved". Then she almost choked at Vala's next sentence.

The four of them looked at Mitchell expectantly. He continued to glare and then broke into a smile. He grabbed Vala around her waist and swung her around in circles. "Daisy May. You done good!" He pulled her closer for a hug and a kiss before setting her back down. Mitchell pushed her at Daniel. "Here you go. You take her; after all you do deserve her. And Daniel, I actually mean that. As a compliment. And don't hurt her! You will bring down the wrath of the Mitchells if you do. And you do not want to make my mother mad." Daniel had reached out and taken Vala by the shoulders pulling her down on his lap as he sat back down on the bench. He had a grin on his face that hadn't left it since Vala had so unabashedly spilled the beans.

From Daniel's lap Vala insisted. "Come on you guys, sit down. Everybody sit. I have a few quick questions for you." There were two matching carved benches along the river and Teal'c, Sam and Mitchell sat on the other one.

Vala hurriedly started talking as Mitchell opened his mouth to speak. "You want to know how those two knew about Daniel and me. Fine. I think that I can explain it. But first, have you found it very easy to talk to these people. Do you catch yourself opening up to them as if they were old and dear friends?"

Mitchell exploded. "I knew it! Alien mind control once again. Is there telepathy involved? Is that how they communicate over distances? I knew that they seemed too nice."

"Calm down. There is no mind control. And no telepathy, at least not in the narrow sense. They are what are called 'empaths'. It is easy to talk to them because they really are nice. They are truly interested in what you feel, in what you have to say. They want to learn about you. They don't read your mind but they are good at picking up on subtle clues, body language, facial expressions, etc. It is a natural skill; you see it used by fortune tellers and psychics on your world. Some people find it useful when playing cards. But they are not trying to trick or manipulate you. It is how they are and they are sincere. Empaths exist in many places throughout the galaxy. They sometimes willingly volunteer to help settle major disputes. However, they can not bear to be in the presence of evil. At times the Goa'uld would try and make use of their gifts but it was never successful. If they were not killed outright by the Goa'uld, for refusing to co-operate, empaths would simply fade away and die if forced to stay. The Goa'uld soon learned that empaths had no value to them and would usually leave them alone. And needless to say empaths avoided the Goa'uld. As far as communicating with their minds over distances I have never heard of it. This of course means nothing I am not an expert."

Daniel started to ask questions immediately. "Tell me more Vala. Where do they come from? Are they one race? Is everyone in their group an empath? Is it passed on by heredity? Do they undergo formal training? Do you think that they would let me study their abilities?"

Mitchell broke in. "Not now Daniel. You and Vala can discuss this later. I suspect that your version of "pillow talk" will be unique. I just hope that it doesn't drive her to dump your sorry boring ass."

After looking at Mitchell as if she wanted to hit him Vala quickly told Daniel. "There are empaths on many planets and I don't think they are the same race. Rarely are all the people on a planet empaths, but all the empaths are related. I can't answer the rest of you questions. They will be more than happy to talk with you. In fact talking to people makes them happy."

"Okay guys, let's move on. To start you and Vala tell us what you found out about these people, then we need to plan the best way to bring up the question of the Priors. If these empaths can't tolerate evil that would have motivated them to remove the Priors from their planet."

Vala assured Mitchell. "What ever happened these people committed no acts of violence. They live at one with nature, eating only plants and would not knowingly hurt any living thing."

Mitchell stood up. "Daniel, you take Vala to the inn and check into your room. We'll meet you here and then we can take a walk out through the fields and have our discussions in private."


	20. Chapter 20

Vala and Daniel walked towards the inn side by side with their hands barely brushing against each other.

Mya came out of the inn and greeted them. "I can tell that you have spoken to your friends. I am sorry that I told your secret, it felt to me as if you had been close for a long time, that it wasn't a recent development."

Daniel replied. "It's fine. Our friends have forgiven us. And you were right about us, what was recent was my admitting to myself what Vala means to me. And I couldn't wait to tell her how much I love her."

Vala smiled at Daniel's words then grabbed their packs saying. "I'll run these upstairs; I want to check out Sam's amazing bathroom. Mya, will I have any trouble finding our room?" Mya shook her head no and Vala took off inside the inn.

Once Vala was through the door Mya approached Daniel. "She loves you very much. I know that I do not have to tell you that. She works very hard to protect you."

Mya stopped smiling and put her hand on Daniel's shoulder. She turned him to face her and said. "Daniel, you must talk with her. Vala is hiding something from you." Seeing Daniel's expression of fear Mya reassured him. "Don't worry. She is safe for now. But I fear that the child has gotten involved in something that she may now regret. I have a question for you and I know it may sound odd. Would Vala have expected that you would continue to deny your love for her? Did she suspect that you were ready to face your true feelings? It is possible that she had decided her situation was hopeless?"

"I don't understand. What are you trying to ask?"

"Daniel, would it be like Vala to volunteer to sacrifice herself for the good of others?"

"She's already done that, more than once."

Mya leaned towards him and kissed his cheek. "Please speak with her, Vala needs to share her fears. She will need your strength to help her survive what lies ahead. Vala doesn't believe that she deserves to be happy. You need to convince her that she does." A look of sudden understanding crossed Mya's face. "You don't think that you deserve to be happy either, do you? I hope that Vala will be able to convince you. You have much in common, both your hearts are damaged but you will help each other find your way through life."

Daniel felt confused and frightened by what Maya was saying. He wanted to run up the stairs and force Vala to talk to him. But he didn't move quickly enough. Vala burst out of the door laughing and calling out to Mya.

"Sam is right! It is a beautiful bathroom. Daniel, you have to see it. The tub is more than big enough for the two of us. Tonight will be fantastic, darling. Our room is lovely, the walls are glass and there are flowers everywhere. It will be like sleeping in a garden." Vala noticed that Daniel wasn't listening to her. Daniel was looking at her with a very serious expression. Mya could feel how scared Vala felt when Daniel didn't respond to her and how Vala was trying to prepare herself to accept that Daniel's love for her was gone. Vala's easy acceptance of unhappiness tore at Mya's heart. Her people had learned ways to block such strong private emotions from each other. It was more difficult with other races. For some reason Mya was especially tuned in to the emotional trauma that haunted these two lovers. Mya would have to help them if only to retain her own sanity. After time, as she became accustomed to their inner voices, Mya would be able to protect herself. For now she could only attempt to help them heal their wounds.

She went to Vala and said. "Daniel still loves you my dear. Don't worry. All is well between you, do not be frightened."

Daniel and Vala didn't move. They had drawn together as they listened to Mya speak. Daniel had his arm around Vala's waist as she leaned against his shoulder. Making shooing motions with her hands Mya told them. "I can not foretell the future, I am not an oracle. But I can predict, with great certainty that you two will remain together and be happy. Smiling, Mya continued to shoo them out into the square.

VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV

As they walked into the square Daniel caught sight of the rest of SG-1 standing on a bridge over the river. Vala saw them at the same time and they started walking in their direction.

Vala stopped suddenly and turned to Daniel. "Daniel, what did Mya say to you? Did she talk to you about me? What did she say? Did I do something wrong? What ever it was I'm sorry. Please Daniel, talk to me." Vala was almost in tears. She had been talking so quickly without taking a breath that Daniel hadn't been able to answer her. Daniel put his arms on her shoulders and pulled her close. Once he was holding her tightly against his chest he began to stroke her hair with his right hand.

"Mya thinks that we need to talk. That there is something that you aren't telling me. Something important that I can help you with." Daniel took his hand off of her hair and Vala looked in his eyes. Whatever she saw there made her smile and her eyes flash.

"Well, Daniel, she may be right. There is something that I wanted to discuss with you. I have wanted to for awhile now but the time never seemed right. And now that "we" happened I may want to rethink my situation."

"Vala, what do you mean by your 'situation'? Does this have something to do with Thomas Graham?"

Vala didn't answer him but stepped back out of his embrace and started walking again. "It will be fine Daniel. Nothing will happen until we return to SG-1. I promise we will talk tonight. At least for a little while, until we come up with more exciting ways to pass the time. Myself I am looking forward to the bathtub. Thank God Jack isn't with us or we'd have to fight Sam for it."

Daniel looked puzzled and almost asked her what Jack had to do with anything. Deep down Daniel hoped that Vala wasn't joking and that Sam and Jack had finally gotten the chance at happiness that they more than deserved. Perhaps he would add them to the list of things to discuss with Vala. Remembering what Mya had said Daniel realized that he was thinking that Sam and Jack deserved to be happy more than he did. He would have shift his priorities now that Vala's being happy meant that he would also.

"Daniel, isn't this a beautiful planet? And peaceful. I am glad that they kept the Priors away no matter how they did it."

VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV

Mitchell, Teal'c and Sam were looking over a field at a small house tucked back under a large tree. Mitchell asked "Did you guys see that? I swear there was a young boy standing outside that house just a second ago. He's gone now and I didn't see him walk away, I swear he sort of faded away."

"Indeed, Colonel Mitchell, I too saw the child and then I saw him no more."

Sam agreed. "Actually I agree with both of you. I saw the boy and it looked as if he just disappeared. But I'm not sure what I saw. Maybe there was mist under the tree or…"

Mitchell broke in. "Sam, there is no damn mist. Look at the sun! There aren't even any shadows."

"Then maybe it was the sun. The sunshine hit our eyes and he moved around the corner so quickly that he appeared to fade out of our view."

Mitchell added. "You may be right. But no matter how nice these people are they give me the wiggins, big time!"

Teal'c looked at Sam and raised one eyebrow. She shrugged her shoulders as if to say 'beats me what the hell he's talking about'.

"Sam, Teal'c here come the Bobbsey Twins. They better not spend the rest of this mission playing kissy face or I'm going to have to shoot myself in the head!"

"Indeed."

"You two guys should cut them a little slack. What a bunch of babies!"

Mitchell had seen Daniel and Vala in a brief hug, break apart, and start walking towards them. He was happy to see them show up. Cam wanted to grill these little Hobbit people about the Priors as soon as possible. Cam was willing to forget about the Casper the Ghost act, at least for the time being. One mystery at a time, with the Prior repelling coming first.

Daniel and Vala joined there friends. Vala asked."What were you guys staring at? That little house over there? What's going on?"

Mitchell said. "Forget that. We'll tell you about it later. What do you have to say about what you found in that ruin?" Daniel and Vala looked at each other unsure where to start.

Taking the bull by the horns Daniel said. "I'm not sure what we can tell you. On one hand we found a lot and on the other hand we found nothing."

Mitchell pleaded with Vala. "Honey, please tell me you can explain what that man just didn't say?"

"I'm not sure that I can. Daniel did a lot of reading and translating but it didn't make a lot of sense. In the end we were able to read most of it but not understand it. There wasn't a problem with the translation. The content didn't make any sense. It was a hodge-podge of different languages, some Ancient, some a form of Goa'uld, some bastard Latin, maybe some Egyptian hieroglyphs, possible Viking runes, and so on and so forth."

Sam asked. "What did they write about?"

Daniel answered. "A lot of creation myths, attempts to reconcile folk tales and stories with the reality of this world. It was if over the years a scholar would come and work on the texts, books, runes, etc. make some progress and then stop. To be replaced by some else who stopped before they finished the work."

"Do you think that it was over such a long time that the scholars died before finishing their work? And then it was some time before another person became interested enough to spend their time there?" asked Sam.

"Maybe." Vala and Daniel answered together.

"So, you didn't find any clue as to how these 'Stepford munchkins' saved their planet?"

Again Vala and Daniel answered in tandem.

"No. Sorry Mitchell."

Mitchell said. "Let's go ahead and show these two a little bit of this idyllic world, see what they think they see."

Vala looked at the Sam and Teal'c. "What's he talking about?"

Sam shook her head. "I don't think we should give you any preconceived notions. We are simply hoping that the three of us aren't going crazy or hallucinating."

"Or being mind controlled by our kind and gentle Prior frightening friends"


	21. Chapter 21

Mitchell and Teal'c were in the lead as SG-1 continued down the road with Vala skipping to catch up with them. A few yards behind them Daniel walked next to Sam. The two friends slowed and fell even further back.

"Daniel, are you okay? You look a little anxious. Did something happen with Mya?"

Daniel gave her a grin and then pulled her to him giving her a hug.

"Mya told me that I have to talk to Vala, that something is going on and I have to help her. I asked Vala and she said that she had been planning to talk to me but that I didn't have to worry, that nothing was going to happen until we returned to SGC. I have a feeling that Thomas might be involved and she didn't deny it when I asked."

Sam asked. "Are you jealous Daniel? Do you think that Vala is involved with him?" Sam had been so happy for him she prayed that it wasn't true. Sam knew that Vala cared for no one except Daniel. But she didn't know if Daniel believed that of if he was jealous.

Daniel looked at Sam and laughed. "My God, Sam. Not at all. The one thing in my life that I'm sure of is "us". Saying it out loud sounds strange but we're happy, both of us. I know that Vala's relationship with Thomas is complicated but I have no reason to be jealous. He's been a good friend to her. But I'm not sure that I trust him to have Vala's best interests at heart. Dr. Graham is a dedicated man and that kind of dedication can be all consuming."

"Daniel, we've all had experience with people who know they are "right" and feel that justifies their behavior no matter who it hurts. That can be dangerous to other people who are involved. I'm sure that you'll be able to straighten out whatever is going on. It's not as if Vala would insist on following through with a commitment she made with no regard for her own safety." Even as Sam said it she knew that it wasn't true and that Daniel knew it.

"Mya said that Vala might need my help to survive. I'm scared that Vala has agreed to do something dangerous. I just can't think of what Thomas and Jason could be involved in that would be so dangerous. They work with the victims here in the States, it's not like they go to countries where there are children soldiers or active sex trade rings. It wouldn't be a reasonable use of their skills."

They walked on silently each lost in their own thoughts. Vala called back to them. "What is with you guys? Daniel, don't be such a "Poky Little Puppy", and get up here! We're approaching a farm and these guys want to see if we're as crazy as they are."

SG-1 stood in the road looking over fields of flowers at a small house nestled into a grove of trees next to a small stream. The delicate branches hung down and almost touched the ground making the scene look like a Blue Willow plate. Similar to other houses on the planet most of the walls were glass and there were colorful plants and flowers everywhere.

Vala spoke first. "This place reminds me of Camelot."

Mitchell looked at her. "Are you crazy? I don't see any holographic knights or other mediaeval trappings. I might give you Pooh Corner, but Camelot?"

Teal'c smiled at Vala in agreement. "I understand what you mean Vala Mal Doran. 'The rain may never fall till after sundown'."

Sam turned to Daniel and Mitchell. "They're right. This place is

close to perfect." Still getting blank stares Sam added. "Camelot? Lerner and Loewe?"

Mitchell snaps his fingers. "Gotcha! Broadway. Richard Burton. Julie Andrews. Good call Vala."

Daniel continued to look puzzled. Vala moved closer to him, touched his hand lightly and explained. "It's a musical play. Teal'c and I often watch DVDs and play albums of shows in the evenings. In Camelot Merlin and Arthur created a paradise. Fated to be destroyed by Lancelot and Guinevere."

Forestalling Daniel's objections Vala continued. "Yes, you're right, that isn't what happened. But musicals are all about the romance."

Mitchell raised his eyebrows at Teal'c. "So musicals, huh?"

"Indeed Cameron Mitchell."

"Mitchell, do you like plays? Siler is talking about starting a Gilbert and Sullivan company. Perhaps you would be interested? He wants to convince Teal's to sing in Pirates."

Daniel shocked Vala by laughing and saying. "Absolutely! Modern Major General of course. He'd be a natural. What? Vala I attended Oxford University. In England? Home of D'Oyly Carte? Never mind, I'll explain it to you later."

Vala was thrilled at the idea of Daniel explaining a Tau'ri cultural reference to her, one that obviously meant nothing to Sam or Mitchell.

Sam asked "How will you put on a play? Would it be on-base?"

"Oh Sam, we would only perform the songs in concert. A full production would be a little ambitious even for Siler, at least for now."

"Sounds as if you are going to miss a lot of activities and friends at SGC Vala."

"What do you mean Mitchell? Why would I miss them? I'll be back, I'm sure that I'll make it back. Even Thomas thinks I have a good chance …"

Daniel wondered why Thomas would think that she had a chance. A chance for what?

"Vala, I didn't mean while you're gone next week. I meant once you move off-base. With Daniel?"

"Why would I do that Cam?

Mitchell looked upset and gave Daniel a guilty apologetic look. He realized that Daniel hadn't asked Vala to move in with him. He had no answer for Vala and said nothing, afraid of saying the wrong thing.

Sam took pity on Cam and answered for him. "Sometimes on Earth two people in love will share a home. It 's sort of traditional..."

"Yes, yes. I know about that. I've seen plenty of chick flicks. Walter and I often hold marathons in the briefing room on Saturday nights. His favorite is Pretty Woman."

Mitchell had to ask. "And yours?"

"Why 'Bringing Up Baby', of course. A paleontologist is pretty close to an anthropologist. And I do madcap pretty well myself."

Sam continued "You'll have plenty of time to sort out your plans."

Mitchell muttered "The devil is in the details."

Both Vala and Daniel looked at each other completely unconcerned obviously thinking that their friends were a little crazy. If nothing else both of them had learned in their lives to "roll with the punches". It would take a lot more than where they lived to cause problems.

Under his breath Mitchell said "Love conquers all!" It was difficult to tell if he was being sarcastic or hopeful.

"Indeed, Colonel Mitchell."

"So guys," asked Vala. "What's your problem with our friends? The place is charming, look at those two children playing on a swing under the largest trees. Could they be any cuter?"

Mitchell looked daggers at Vala. "Maybe if there was a unicorn standing next to them, with a rainbow over the house."

Sam added the voice of reason. "Please. Daniel and Vala keep your eyes on the kids. Don't stare at them, talk to us and just watch them over our shoulders."

The team formed a small circle with Teal'c and Mitchell's backs to the house and Vala, Sam and Daniel facing them.

Sam decided to take the opportunity to pump Vala for information about Thomas. "So Vala. When do you and Thomas leave for Washington? Are you going to get a chance to see any of the city? Are you going to any other places?"

"Not for a few weeks. Thomas has to finish making arrangements with the hospital, and I think that he and Dr. Lee still have some hardware issues to straighten out. He hasn't told me if I will get to go outside. Jason has been telling me a little about Washington. If it was up to him I think I would get to do some sightseeing, but I'll have to see. Thomas has a lot of work he wants to get done while we can. And Thomas is in charge, not Jason. Though lovers have been known to have greater influence on each other than you might expect."

Mitchell choked. "Lovers?"

Vala laughed. "Come on Cam. Don't ask, don't tell. You didn't know?"

Sam smiled saying. "Everyone always said that Thomas was taken. Do most people on base know?"

"Indeed."

"Teal'c. How come you knew and I didn't?"

"Colonel Mitchell, you would have to answer that."

"Danny?"

"I didn't know but I could care less. Homosexuality is not a universal taboo, Mitchell."

Sam added "Look at the Ancient Greeks, Cam."

Mitchell looked around at the four of them. "Well, that does help explain the recent improvement in Vala's taste in clothes."

"I really don't understand this fixation of Tau'ri men. If Thomas doesn't expect to sleep with you why would you care what he does with anyone else?"

Sam said to Vala. "It can be a very complicated issue for many Earth people. As a psychiatrist, I'm sure that Dr. Graham would be more than willing to explain some of their concerns."

"Okay. I'll talk to him. But it all seems so silly. Isn't it more important what kind of person they are?"

Daniel grabbed Vala's shoulder and whispered loudly "Over there. Do you see the boy in blue getting off the swing?"

Vala said. "Oh, my. He sort of faded away out of sight, didn't he? What do you think Sam? Phase shifting, alternative reality, quantum mirror, time travel, hidden transporter rings, Asgard beaming technology?"

Sam smiled as Vala's mind took off in all directions. As usual, Vala's stream of consciousness brain storming helped Sam consider and reject hypotheses in response. Sam had recently started to appreciate how quick Vala's mind was, how she often had an instinctual reaction to a scientific problem. A reaction that focused in on the basis of the problem. Vala had seen the answer to stopping the Super Gate and found it quicker to solve the problem than explain it to people who were ready to dismiss her ideas out of hand. Sam knew that Daniel felt guilty for not listening to Vala, but he never knew that Sam actually felt worse. She had almost prevented the destruction of the Super Gate because she underestimated Vala's scientific understanding. Sam had tried to console herself with the knowledge that Vala worked hard on being underestimated. But that didn't help her guilt.

"Come on, let's go. I want to see what's under that tree. Maybe the child just fell in a well. Wouldn't we feel stupid if we get over there and looked down to see it sitting in a giant hole?"

"Okay, Vala. We can check it out. But don't expect to find anything. We never did."

Daniel said "Cam, that doesn't mean that she won't. Vala's powers of observation are finely honed, one of her most useful survival skills I would imagine."

Vala smiled at Daniel in appreciation. Cam was facing away so she moved close to Daniel and standing on her toes kissed him. Before he had a chance to respond she jumped away running to catch up with Mitchell as he started down the lane to the house.

Teal'c called out. "Vala, maybe it is 'Brigadoon'?"

The boy was nowhere in sight but the second child was still standing by the swing. She looked to be about 16, she wore a simple yellow flowered dress and her long blonde hair was in braids. Smiling at Vala and Mitchell she stepped forward and extended her hand. "Greetings. I am called Rayna, Welcome to my home." Gesturing towards the rest of the team she said. "Please have your friends join us. We shall sit in the garden to rest and talk."

Mitchell motioned at Daniel, Sam and Teal'c to walk to the house. The three of them approached the house warily. Rayna smiled walking up to each one of them and greeting them in turn. When she got to Daniel instead of shaking his hand Rayna took his extended hand between both of hers. Her smile broadened and continuing to hold his hand Rayna looked over at Vala.

"Did you talk to Mya about us?"

Rayna replied. "Yes, Mya did speak of you. But it is not difficult to notice your affection. I suspect that it is obvious to many." She looked at Sam for confirmation.

Sam nodded in agreement. "Very obvious Rayna."

"Mya suspects that your mother was an empath Vala. Your feelings are not just easier for us to read than the others but we have problems suppressing them. It is difficult for us, your feelings resonate in our heads and our hearts are drawn to you. At first we thought that it was because you were from a different planet than your friends. The Mya remembered hearing that daughters of empath mothers often have little control over how they broadcast their feelings to true empaths. It isn't anything bad, we just need to explore ways to shield ourselves." Seeing a guilty look on Vala's face Rayna tried to assure her. "Please do not worry. We are happy to be afforded the chance to learn new skills. We have gotten used to being in control. It is not a bad thing to be forced to face and deal with new experiences."

Mitchell asked. "The Priors?"

Rayna nodded. "Mya and Jax have been letting our people know that they think it is time for us to explain to our new friends exactly what happened when the followers of the Ori came to our planet. Our people do nothing without consensus, until a decision can be made in total unanimity there is no decision. Now we have all decided that Mya and Jax are right. Tonight after evening meal we will talk together."

Rayna clapped her hands together saying. "But now please let me show you around my house. I want to hear about your planet, your lives, how it is to travel throughout the stars. I have always wanted to go."

Daniel asked her. "Are you not permitted to travel?"

Rayna replied. "We can do whatever we wish, though most of us find life here to be more than enough. Therefore as a people we have little experience of other worlds. Also we do not understand all of the technology here on our home world. It is not clear to us if we once knew but decided to abandon a life based on such things, or if these things were left by people who were here before us. Very few of us are interested in exploring out past. You, Vala and Daniel, have been working in the place we call the Well of History. From time to time one of our people will dedicate part of their lives attempting to achieve understanding of our origins. However so far very little has been accomplished. I had once thought that I would spend much of my life in that place. But the arrival of the Priors and now your appearance has inspired me to look for answers among the stars."

Daniel persisted. "Rayna, will that be accepted by your people?"

"Daniel, searching for knowledge is never wrong. Neither is living a full life within the close circle of friends and family. My desire

for a different life is not a rejection of such a life and my people will simply hope that I am happy in my life journey."

Rayna led them around the back of the house where they came upon the ubiquitous arbor covered with vines and climbing flowers. They sat on the benches around a large table while Rayna went in the back door. "I will bring you cool water and juice to refresh yourselves. You must be tired having walked many hours on our roads. I fear that we spend much time and effort on our fields and less on our roads. Above all else we value keeping our lives intertwined with nature."

Vala looked at her friends and said. "She seems very nice."

"They are all very nice, Vala. At least they all seem to be very nice. I'll have to reserve judgment for now. We'll see tonight when they talk about the Priors. At least they are now willing to even admit they met them."

Sam said. "Mitchell, I think that they were waiting until all of them agreed to trust us. You can't blame them for being cautious."

"Indeed!"

Mitchell looked closely at his team. "Okay. After we spend a little quality time with Blondie here we're going to return to our camp. We'll join them for dinner." Sam was going to say something when Mitchell forestalled her. "Yes, Sam. We can go early enough so that you can take a bath before dinner. Jeez, I never would have expected you to be such a wuss Carter."

"I was going to ask about setting up more sophisticated defenses around our camp. If we have misread these people we may need a secure place to take refuge while we wait for rescue from SGC."

Teal'c and Vala spoke together. "I want the bath."

When Rayna returned with two cold pitchers and glasses the team was laughing together. She smiled her approval and offered them drinks. They relaxed and rested. Daniel asked questions about her people's history or lack of recorded history. Mitchell continued to prod her with questions about the Priors; she smiled her refusals to answer, offering him a plate of cookies instead. To everyone's amusement Sam and Teal'c had numerous questions about plumbing, wells, aqueducts, natural hot springs, etc. Vala sat off to one side lost in thought. Daniel would catch her eye with a concerned look and Vala would smile reassuringly. Daniel knew that she was thinking about her mother.

Mitchell finished his drink with one large final swallow and stood up. The others finished their drinks and stood up together. They all thanked Rayna for her hospitality. Mitchell asked her to thank Mya and Jax for their help in persuading the people to meet with them. SG-1 walked around to the front of the house and headed back towards the village and the path to their camp. Assuring Rayna that they would see her in the village at the evening meal they bid her farewell.


	22. Chapter 22

After hiking past the village and up the hill to their camp SG-1 sat down. Mitchell sat with his back against a tree, Teal'c sat ramrod straight in some sort of modified Yoga position, and Sam was perched on a large rock while Vala and Daniel sat back to back providing support for each other. Vala had pulled a handful of power bars out of her pocket before she sat down. As Vala opened one and started chewing on it she asked if anyone else was hungry. Daniel took one out of her hand but no one else was interested. Mitchell was pleased to see that Vala and Daniel were leaning against each other but there was no hanky panky going on between them.

"Good going kids. Glad to see no hanky panky going on. Keep up the good work."

Vala was thrown a little by 'hanky panky' though she could guess what he meant. Both Vala and Daniel gave Mitchell looks of pure innocence, smiled but didn't bother to reply.

"Well guys." Said Mitchell. "What do you think of the whole Land of Oz theme park we've fallen into?"

Sam answered. "I'm not sure it would be worthwhile to speculate before we speak with the villagers this evening. Once we hear what they have to say we'll be able to have a more worthwhile discussion."

"Daniel, you're usually up for speculation. Any thoughts?"

"Vala and I are interested in what Rayna said about the information in their Well of History. I realize that learning how they were able to avoid the Priors is the priority of the mission, but I can't help being intrigued by their history or actually their lack of history. If I could spend some time with Rayna we might find some answers."

Mitchell hesitated before speaking. "I know that you guys make fun of me for reading all of the SG-1 mission reports but something about these people seems familiar to me. And since my experience with alien life forms was pretty much non-existent before I came to SGC I don't think I'm remembering anything from my own life."

"Indeed, Colonel Mitchell. However, perhaps in the past you were abducted and then had your memory wiped clean. Now somehow some memories of your captors have broken through."

Mitchell looked at Teal'c in disgust. "How come this sense of humor of yours never made it into any of the mission reports? What happened to stoic, virtually mute, alien warrior Teal'c?"

Teal'c showed no reaction and Sam fought back a laugh.

Vala leaned hard against Daniel's back and pushed herself to her feet. "I think that Sam had a good idea about setting up some defenses around the camp just in case things go a little wonko tonight."

Colonel Mitchell added. "Good idea. I'll contact SGC and apprise them of our situation and arrange a contact schedule. Then off we go to Camelot."

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The team entered the village square and headed to the inn. Mya was standing in the garden and waved to them as they approached.

"I am happy to see all of you. Jax told us that you would be meeting with the village after we eat. You have some time before we serve the meal if you would like to rest or bathe. Perhaps a drink?"

Mitchell spoke to his team. "How about we skip the baths until later, for now we can wash up a little, maybe put on a clean shirt, whatever."

"Indeed, Colonel Mitchell. I desire to spend some time in my room meditating. Please inform me when we are ready to eat." Teal'c nodded to his friends and Mya before walking up the stairs. Sam and Mitchell followed behind Teal'c.

"I would be pleased to inform you all when the meal is ready to be served. Jax has not yet arrived but I expect him soon."

Vala and Daniel headed towards the stairs hand in hand. Mya called out to Vala. "Vala, would it be possible for me to speak to you for a moment by yourself. I think that Daniel did not get enough sleep last night and is somewhat tired. Perhaps he could wait for you in your room I won't keep you for long."

Daniel nodded in agreement, kissed Vala and went upstairs.

"Vala, please come with me into my sitting room it is more comfortable than the inn's dining room." Mya led her through a door tucked under the staircase. It was another glass enclosed room with a view of the river that meandered through the village. It looked out on a section with a series of small bridges covered with flowering vines crossing over the water. It was still light outside and the lamps in the room were not yet lit. The sun was setting which bathed the room in a soft pinkish light. The furniture in the room was similar to the beds in the inn. There were couches and chairs with carved wooden frames covered by fluffy overstuffed pillows. Mya sat on a sofa with Vala next to her. "Vala, I would like to talk to you about your secret. No, don't deny it. I am not reading your mind, but I can tell that there is something you are hiding from your friends. I think that you expect them to be displeased with what you have planned. You know that Daniel will be hurt, which is something that you do not want. Please tell me a little about your situation. It may help for you to practice talking about it with me before you face your friends. I do not think that it could hurt."

"Mya, I think that is an excellent idea and I appreciate that you care. Perhaps if I can make you understand I can hope to do as much for them. I need to start with the Lost Boys. It is not a pretty story and it will be painful when you feel my horror and again when you experience you own reaction to the situation. I needed to warn you, though I know you will insist on continuing."

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About an hour later they left the room and Vala went to her room. She quietly opened the door and entered. Daniel was sprawled across the bed dead to the world. He had taken off his boots and socks but nothing else. She stripped to her underwear and crawled in next to Daniel. She had to shove him on to his side of the bed in order to make enough room for herself. He mumbled in his sleep as she moved him but never woke. There was a woven coverlet at the foot of the bed which Vala pulled over both of them. Snuggling up next to Daniel she was asleep within minutes.

Teal'c meditated while the rest of the team napped after deciding to go over their notes or start writing a mission report while resting on their beds.

Mya knocked quietly on everyone's room announcing dinner would be ready in a short time. She assured them that they had enough time to wash themselves and change clothes if they desired.

The team assembled outside of Mitchell's room preparing to go down the stairs. All of them had put on clean tee shirts, Vala's hair had been brushed and pulled into pigtails, and Sam had her usual girl next door fresh scrubbed look with an eager expression on her face.

"Off we go, guys," The team followed Cam down the steps.

Tables had been pushed together to make one large table covered with dishes and platters of food. There were about twenty people sitting on the benches with six or seven empty places scattered throughout. Daniel and Vala took two seats next to each other while Sam, Teal'c and Mitchell found single seats among the villagers. Jax was sitting in the middle of a side bench. Mya came to the table carrying pitchers of juice and beer with which she filled the mugs on the table.

Jax introduced SG-1 to the villagers. The team recognized Petr, Rayna, Sky, and some people from the group of farmers and teachers they had eaten with at their first meal in the inn. Jax then introduced each of the villagers.

"Please, everyone eat. Our people do not discuss important matters or make decisions on empty stomachs." Platters were passed around the table, plates filled, forks lifted, beer or juice drunk. None of SG-1 drank beer this time. Soon the room was full of lively conversation. Vala and Daniel hadn't eaten in the inn before and were charmed by the room which made it feel as if they were actually outdoors, by the food and most of all by the people. Just as their friends had Vala and Daniel found themselves opening up to the villagers and responding to the sincere interest of the people.

As the last piece of fruit pastry was eaten and the last mug drained the villagers rose and cleared the table. When the tables had been wiped clean they sat back down on the benches and looked expectantly at Jax who said. "Now we will speak together as friends sharing our thoughts and feelings. Societies are governed in different ways. I am not the leader of the people we have no leader as you understand it to be. Rayna explained to you that all of our decisions are reached by consensus, we all must agree." Jax smiled "Of course it is helpful that we are empaths and when discussing such issues we do not hide our feelings from each other."

"I will function as a conduit between us. Too many voices speaking at the same time is confusing to all. I know that you have many questions so we shall begin now, if that is agreeable to you?"

It had been decided that Mitchell would be the spokesman for SG-1. "We are grateful to you and appreciate all that you have done for us."

"I will be honest with you as long as I am comfortable doing so; I can't promise any more, everyone hides things." Jax looked at each team member in turn not moving on to the next until he received a nod from the one before.

"As you are aware our people are empaths. We have difficulty functioning without the ability to filter out the unwanted feelings and emotions of others. We value privacy and are taught to respect our friends and families, not that mistakes are not made. Especially when the young are involved. The transition from child to adult is similar throughout the galaxies. A living Hell for both young and old."

The team smiled and Vala smacked Daniel on the back of his head after he said. "Oh, my, God! Can you imagine a thirteen year old Vala? Hell must not have even begun to describe it."

Jax continued. "And people in love, whatever their age, have been known to exercise bad judgment. But for the most part our people retain control and respect the rights of all." Jax stopped speaking.

Mitchell prompted. "However …"

"At times problems are caused by outsiders. Vala, as an example ..." At the mention of her name Vala sat up straighter and held tightly to Daniel's shirt sleeve with her fist.

Jax gave her a reassuring look. "As the daughter of an empath mother we read her constantly. Though she is not herself an empath there is a strong link. In time and with practice we will learn to handle it. Reading Vala, though it is sometimes frightening and often sad, does not create any real problems. We all feel a strong need to comfort and assist her, which is what we strive to do for all." Jax smiled again at Vala as if he was waiting for her to relax. Mya walked over to stand behind Vala and Daniel. Mya lightly stroked Vala's hair brushing her bangs off of her forehead. Sam was reminded of her mother as she watched Mya and wondered if Vala had similar comforting memories of her mother. Sam hoped that she did.

Mya rested her hands on their shoulders; one on Daniel's the other on Vala's. As Jax continued Mya leaned down and whispered in Daniel's ear. "She knows that you love her but it would be kind if you would remind her from time to time." Vala looked sharply at Mya and Daniel. Mya had spoken so softly that Vala had heard nothing. She couldn't even be sure that Mya had said anything to Daniel. However between his sudden smile and an expression she knew Cam would call "love sick calf eyes" she was convinced that Mya had spoken about her.

"True evil is different. Our people are unable to block out the emotions of evil creatures. We can never learn how nor is it something that we wish to learn. Spending an extended period of time in their presence will drive an empath mad and then they die. If placed in a sarcophagus once removed they will die again, repeated use simply makes them die more quickly. Over time races like the Goa'uld, who hoped to profit from our talents, learned that it wasn't worth their effort. Our people decided that it might be preferable to find a way to stay out of sight to begin with. You have seen some of us, such as Petr over there," Jax pointed to the boy in blue who had been at the housed with Rayna, "seemingly fade away. It is both an illusion and reality. He appeared to fade and he also went to another place. We can often make suggestions to others which they believe and accept as their own. When you are unable to locate those you wish to convert it is not unlikely that you will decide to waste no further time on a planet. If voices in your head have encouraged your decision all the better."

Mitchell said under his breath. "I knew it. Jedi mind tricks." Teal'c nodded with an implied "Indeed."

Looking around the table all of the team appeared mesmerized by Jax's words. Sam's hopes for a technological revelation were dashed as he continued.

"I will try my best to explain how we accomplish what we do. Science and technology are not something that our people truly understand. We understand plants and sunshine, clouds and rain, all of nature's secrets are open to us. The history and origins of our people have been hidden. We do not know if we did that to ourselves or if it was done by others. We do not know why our past would be hidden from us. But we are content to embrace the life we have and to use our abilities to accomplish good regardless of their source. When we fade we are not sure if it is an innate ability such as being an empath or if our desires are being filled by an outside force, a force perhaps based on science or technology or a higher level entity. I do not need to understand how I can fade in order to do so. Maybe there is a machine that I control with my thoughts. Or maybe not. I do not think that I would gain anything from knowing how our life works."

Daniel looked as if he was going to speak.

"Daniel, I know that you disagree. You also Sam. Yet my people believe this. I know that this may prevent us from helping you, if we know not how our magic works you may not be able to reproduce it to fight the Ori. I am hoping that there are other ways that we can assist you, for we really do want to help. It is not our way to stand by and watch others suffer. We will hide from evil and we will drive it off but we will not kill. You will find no weapons here."

Rayna who was sitting next to Cam stood up and asked if she could speak.

"Jax, I respect you as I respect all of my people. Everyone knows of my desires to learn more about us. To learn who or what we are, where we are from, what we can do and how we are able to do so. I would like to join our friends and travel with them to study and learn. I would share what I discovered with them but only to bring good to other worlds and deter evil. I would not feel compelled to share this knowledge with my people. They would continue on as before with no interference from the outside worlds."

Jax looked around at the people in the room. Everyone was silent; SG-1 was unsure if these people were actually communicating with each other or just determining each others feelings. After almost ten minutes Jax relaxed, smiled and, looking at Daniel, spoke. "I can tell that you have doubts. You are concerned that harm may come to Rayna. That although we do not forbid her to take on such a search that we will not actually let her leave. You have met others who claim to allow personal freedom yet that freedom is limited to the freedom to feel and act exactly the same as everyone else. We trust Rayna; she will shield us and respect our wishes. And she will be there to offer her services and knowledge to any that comes after who also shares her desires."

Jax reached across the table and took Rayna's hands. "The people are happy to have you share your time with them. We believe that they are good people and we trust them to allow you to be true to our beliefs, to live as partners with nature and harming no one."

Jax and the others stood up together. Mitchell wasn't sure if they were being dismissed.

Jax said. "The people feel that Rayna should continue her education into the way of our people. She will demonstrate the tactics we used against the Priors and do her best to explain them. We will now say good night." Jax turned and walked from the table and just as Petr had done he began to fade as did the rest of the people. Jax waved as he completely disappeared in front of their eyes.

Only Mya and Rayna remained in the room. Mitchell jumped up and ran towards Rayna so excited and laughing he was almost shouting. "That is just so cool. Is there any way that you can teach us to go all Casper like that? If not, can you take someone with you if you hold on to them? Does it hurt? When he says that you go to "another place" how far away is this place?" Rayna laughed with the rest of the team at Cam's questions.

Daniel tried to be the calm voice of reason saying. "I think that this is a lot to process for us all. We should all meet in the morning after a good night's rest."

Vala pulled Daniel aside. "If you think that you are going to get a good night's rest you are sadly mistaken." Daniel pulled her close and whispered "I wasn't talking about us. That was for the boring normal people."

Sam looked at Daniel as if he had gone crazy. "A lot to process? Good night's sleep? Who are you and what have you done with Daniel Jackson? I know that you have a million questions for her and so do the rest of us. I, for one am not ready to sleep. How about you Mitchell?"

Before he could answer Mya spoke. "It is very taxing for us when we gather and share our souls. Rayna is excited to speak with you but I will insist that she rest until the morning." Mya had put her arms around Rayna as she spoke. Rayna had lost some of the color in her face and looked drained.

Mitchell looked at Mya and apologized. "I didn't mean to …"

Mya didn't let him finish. "We understand. Rayna will be waiting for you here in the morning."

The team had stood up when the villagers had gone, and headed towards the stairs. Mya said. "Perhaps you would wish to relax in our sitting room. I spoke with Vala in there earlier and she described it as "cozy". Vala does have something she desires to share with all of you. Now may be an opportune time. The next days will be filled with activity for you all."

Mya kissed each one of them in turn before fading out with Rayna still in her embrace. She had kissed Vala last and gently encouraged her to speak with her friends.

Vala looked at her friends. "Well the room is lovely and quite comfortable. We may as well go in and relax for a bit." They followed her through the small door under the stairs.

Cam and Teal'c sat on one couch, Daniel and Sam on another. Vala sat by herself in a large chair facing the four team members.

She started speaking. "This is a little strange I know. And I really meant to speak to you earlier and not wait until so late in the project. General Landry was threatening me trying to force my hand. Thomas also feels that I have been remiss in my obligations to you, as friends and team mates." She stopped and looked at her friends.

Mitchell prompted her. "Well get on with it. How bad can it be?"

"It isn't bad at all. I hope that it will turn out to be good."

Daniel started at her trying to remember what Mya had said to him. "Darling, maybe you should just start at the beginning. Or at least close to the beginning. You explained to us how your concerns led you to spend time with Thomas, hoe he and Jason work with patients who have had experiences similar to yours as a host. Children forced against their will to participate in evil deeds, child soldiers, sex slaves, SGC members who were forced to participate in atrocities when under the power of other beings. I was under the impression that Thomas wanted you to work with these victims feeling that a survivor of similar trauma could connect with them. Help convince them that they are not guilty of anything."

"Daniel, that was my idea also. Thomas had explained to me that these children rejected such assurances of their innocence when they came from those with no understanding of what they had endured. He was convinced that they would know I was also a victim like them. Thomas had me meet with a small group and everything appeared to go well. I was so happy that I could do some good with my life."

"So what was the problem?"

Vala looked sadly at Sam and turned to Daniel before she answered. She was afraid of how he would react to what she said next. Plastering one of her widest grins across her face she began her explanation. "It is just a little complicated. And like the people here I don't always understand the reasons or I don't always remember what I have been told. I do tend to focus on what you call the bottom line. I am a pragmatist. I will deal with reality not what might have been or should have been or what I wished had been."

No one said a word and she continued. "It turns out that I was not just broken by my experiences in life but I am not fixable." Her smile stayed on her face but there were tears in her eyes. Vala looked at everyone but Daniel. Suddenly you saw her grit her teeth take a loud deep breath and turn her face towards him. The smile remained on her face but her eyes were full of fear, her body was trembling and she looked as if she expected her world to collapse.


	23. Chapter 23

Vala raised her head and looked at Daniel, or at least where Daniel had been sitting just moments before. He was no longer on the couch next to Sam. Fear punched her in the stomach, crossing her arms against her chest she started to double over when she felt someone touch her shoulders. Daniel was standing behind her chair, bending down he picked her up in his arms and in one quick move he was sitting in the chair with Vala on his lap. She kept her arms tight around his neck for a moment then turned to face the team. She sat up straight and ignored her desire to sink back into Daniel's embrace.

"That was a little more melodramatic than I intended, even for me. Sorry guys." Vala gave them an apologetic smile and continued her explanation.

"It turns out that the children are even smarter than Thomas had bargained for, they could tell that I hadn't been able to forgive myself that I believed I was in some way responsible for the actions of Qetesh, that I still considered myself guilty. They rejected my attempts to convince them that they were innocent. So what had seemed so worthwhile was pretty much worthless. Unless I could be "fixed" I couldn't help other victims."

When she stopped to take a breath before continuing Daniel whispered to her. "But you aren't guilty, you're innocent." The others heard him and murmured their agreement.

Vala yelled "Stop." Her voice and face showed anger. "All of you shut up! None of you can dare tell me not to feel guilt. Daniel, you feel responsible for everything that happened to Sha're. Teal'c carries his own burden of guilt regarding her death. Mitchell, we all know you've your own nightmares. Sam, I don't know you well enough, yet, to know what hell might be in your past. But I do know that you don't feel that you're more entitled to happiness than anyone else or that you're better or more deserving than anyone else. Jack thinks of what happened to his son every day. We understand that we deserve to feel our guilt and no one can take that away from us. It has become a part of who we are."

"I think that we have entered the pot and kettle realm, have we not Colonel Mitchell?"

"Indeed Teal'c." said Mitchell.

"Okay, Vala. Let's say that we admit there may be some small kernel of truth in what you say. What does Thomas expect you to do? Years of intense psychotherapy?"

"No, Sam, not at all. Thomas says that I am too good at repressing and since I won't admit that there is anything wrong with being broken, which makes me unfixable. None the less I am able to function at a very high level. It seems that I have fantastic coping skills. In that regard Thomas admires all of you, especially Daniel. I think that's why he believes Daniel and I could actually be happy; he doesn't think that a normal sane person could function in a relationship with either one of us. He calls us SGC's emotional "walking wounded".

Daniel tightened his arms around Vala and kissed the top of her head as she continued. "Thomas thinks that my "problems" (using air quotes) may be an asset in my job. The willingness to take great risks for the potential rewards of great good is necessary. Though I am definitely not suicidal I've faced much horror in my life and won't back down. I understand, we all understand, that someone has to do what we do. That we are good at it and we can accept the reality that we are not indispensable. Not easily expendable, we don't seek self-sacrifice, but we will accept it."

Her four friends simply stared at her without talking. "I'm sorry. I don't think that I explained that very well. I should have Thomas write it down for me. And I didn't mean to imply that we are the same and I hope that you aren't angry with me. I am so sorry." Vala couldn't read their expressions. Each one appeared to be seriously considering what she'd said.

Vala turned around in Daniel's arms and put her hands on each side of his face pulling his mouth down to meet hers. Before Vala kissed Daniel she told him. "I am afraid though, that you, Daniel, are like me. But we will be happy. I believe that you deserve it and you believe that I do. So between us we are both just stubborn enough to succeed." Daniel smiled in agreement and when she ended up passionately kissing his teeth they laughed, flashing back on their first night together when they had laughed for what seemed like hours. No matter what they discovered about this planet or the people here, the Well of History would always belong to them.

Mitchell was clearing his throat trying to get their attention. Vala was now giggling and, if truth be told, Daniel was pretty close to giggling himself. "Break it up you guys. I think you have a bit more to tell us there, little girl."

Sam stood up and walked to the chair. She took Vala's face between her hands and turned it until they were eye to eye. "I hate to admit it, but Cam's right. You owe us, we deserve to know what's going on with you. I'll give you that we are all a little broken ourselves but we care about you and that gives us rights." Sam had started off sounding angry but was smiling at the end. Back on the couch Sam said. "So spill it!"

Vala looked at each of her friends in turn. Teal'c, as usual, had his eyebrow raised. She decided it was a 'Go ahead, tell me everything, don't worry I love you' eyebrow. Sam and Mitchell were both smiling while giving her concerned looks. When Vala had turned her body around so that she was facing forward Daniel had placed his hands loosely around her waist. He didn't want to constrain Vala but he wanted to make sure that she knew he was there for her.

Vala rubbed her hands together and made a fist. With a nervous smile she spoke. "I want to apologize for the mistakes I am sure I'll make in my explanation. Sam, feel free to break in when I made egregious scientific errors. I'm not pretending to be stupid; it isn't that the science is beyond me. However my orientation to science and technology is very pragmatic. I am more of an engineer than a theoretical astrophysicist. Obviously I need to understand the theory behind the technology but sometimes it is an intuitive understanding. But I digress."

Looking uncertain Vala rubbed her face with her hands then placed them on her knees and held her breath and as she released it she began. "Thomas was determined to find a way to take advantage of my experiences and my willingness to help. He understood that it had become very important to me. I wanted to be able to help, I wanted my horrible life to be able to help someone, to give it meaning and worth." Vala looked over her shoulder at Daniel. "Do not blame Thomas. I pleaded with him to let me help and he knew that I was deadly serious."

"Thomas discussed it with Jason and they came up with the idea of my helping those therapists and counselors who would be working with the victims. Actually my help with training others was Thomas's first idea for making use of me. When he read my file he tried to figure out how to help SGC personnel who had been psychologically traumatized by being taken as hosts, tortured or otherwise controlled by outside entities and forced to perform horrendous acts completely against their will. Thomas felt that if he could understand what they had gone through that it would help him treat them. He was eager to interview me but he was even more interested in finding a way to help him more fully understand my experiences. Listening to me would be helpful but he wanted a better more thorough way to understand. He had discussed it with Jason who agreed that it would be of immense help. Jason was thinking about his Lost Boys and sex trade victims. Jason wanted to take advantage of the similarities between our experiences. Helping people at SGC, though important, would only help a small select group. Jason wanted to find a method he could use to understand experiences that were the same but not exactly the same. When a child is drugged, brainwashed and forced to participate, against their will in dreadful, horrid acts it is not far from being host to a Goa'uld. Jason has worked with such damaged children and explained that they were extremely perceptive and distrusting. They feel how repulsed people are by what they did and they know that it is difficult for people to separate the doer of the deed from the deed itself. Along with Thomas he thought that the children would listen to me and be willing to consider that I might be telling them the truth. That they do deserve to be forgiven. Of course you know how that worked out, or didn't."

Sam leaned forward. "Where does Bill Lee come into it?"

Vala tried to run her fingers though her hair but they became tangled in her pigtails. Daniel undid them and stuffed the elastic bands into his shirt pocket. Vala looked at him and mouthed "Thanks" running her fingers through her now unbound hair. When she put her hands back down on her knees Daniel used his hands to smooth her now wild and tangled hair down against her head.

"I'm really sorry. I was rambling. I suspect for two reasons. I feel more comfortable talking about what we hoped to accomplish and why it was important that we do something. But I am also postponing talking about the next part. I'm a little scared of what Daniel might think."

"Just what are you afraid "your Daniel" will think, Vala. Are you afraid that when I realize you're considering doing something dangerous that I'll try and forbid you from doing it? I might prefer that you're not hurt. I might even hope that you'll no longer want to take chances that might put an end to "us" before we have much of a chance to be "us". But you're an adult and capable of making your own choices and I'll support your decision."

Mitchell said. "I'm impressed Jackson. I hope Vala appreciates how much you respect her."

Sam nodded in agreement.

Teal'c gave Daniel a 'you have got to be kidding me" eye brow raise.

Daniel leaned forward and put his lips against her ear. He whispered so softly that no one else could hear him. "And if you believe that bullshit your lie detecting skills must be rusty. There is no way that I am letting you out of my sight for the next forty years or so." Vala almost choked. She had been impressed by Daniel's speech, too. Such a reasonable and mature response was not exactly what she had expected and she wasn't sure what she thought about it. But after hearing the words he barely breathed into her ear Vala was ecstatic. She gave Daniel a quick hug and continued.

"Thomas started to think about what he wanted to be the outcome of the project. He and Jason spent hours discussing it. They wanted a way for the people who would be treating the victims to have a real understanding of what they had gone through. Not that you need to actually be tortured to help a victim of torture. He just feels that the type of trauma undergone by these victims is unique and very hard for therapists to comprehend, for anyone to comprehend. He wanted to go further than an interview with a victim, meaning me. He wanted a more visceral connection. Later no one remembered who thought of a form of virtual reality game. They could use portions of my memories as a basis for the content. Dr. Lee is interested in virtual reality and has some experience in the field. Thomas brought him in on the project as soon as we hit on the idea."

An excited Mitchell chimed in. "That sounds pretty cool. I'd love to be test subject, once you have a prototype."

Sam asked. "So what's the catch, Vala?"

"Well, guys." Daniel's body stiffened as Vala started to answer Sam. "Dr. Lee and Thomas have been working with the memory device that they used on you Mitchell when they implanted the false memory of you killing that woman and then we used to give me the false memories to catch Adria in our trap."

Vala was watching Mitchell when she mentioned his committing murder, if only in his mind. She knew that he continued to be disturbed by the experience. He saw Vala looking at him and smiled reassuringly. Then he noticed both Sam and Teal'c staring at him. He laughed and said. "Come on guys. I'm fine. Trust me!"

"Dr. Lee had worked on the modification of the device when you used it to allow your friend in the hospital to experience your exploits going through the Stargate. What they came up with was a new way to use the device, with further modifications, to develop a virtual reality to be experienced by the therapists. My memories would be downloaded; programs would be used so that the fear, horror and suffering would remain but somehow manipulated to fit an expected scenario. They would have been told that they were reliving the experiences of a victim of the sex trade or a child soldier or perhaps a kidnap victim. I have to admit that I am quite fuzzy about the details in terms of how it works."

"You asked about the catch. Well, I'm the catch. Thomas feels there is a chance that I could have some problems with re-experiencing the emotions and feelings of being Qetesh, and that the intensity of the memories required by the device could cause a sort of sensory overload. This is an experimental device though it has been tested, and we know that it can record memories which can be filtered and then experienced by others within a virtual world. But those were normal memories, and we need it to work with my crazy and not normal memories. What it comes down to is the strong possibility that the process may be such a shock to my mind that it would shut down in self-defense. Thomas thinks there is a good chance that I will end up in a permanent catatonic state, refusing to interact with the real world, shutting out my pain by shutting out life."

There was complete silence. Daniel had started to hold Vala tighter as she went into more details. At the moment Vala was having trouble catching her breath but it didn't bother her, she was just happy to have Daniel's arms around her. Asphyxiation seemed a small price to pay.

Mitchell spoke first. "Hell, no. That is so not going to happen. Forget it. No way." He kept shaking his head.

"I'm going to go over the schematics and programming code with Bill when we get back to SGC. Maybe it isn't as bad as it sounds. Thomas's guess at what "a good chance" isn't very exact."

"Sam, I'm sure that Bill and Thomas have done as good a job as possible. It is really a fantastic device and shows great promise. But I am the ultimate test subject. Whatever happens they will be able to learn so much from me, it will be worth it regardless of the consequences. And as you said what exactly is meant by "a good chance". Thomas and I have agreed that it is a viable project and the results could be spectacular. The help this process could provide for so many people means that we owe it to society to proceed."

"Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead." Mitchell looked resigned.

Sam asked Vala. "Does this mean that you're going through with it? Will you at least wait until I get a chance to talk to Bill? I'm not saying they haven't done a great job, but please Vala; promise to give me some time."

Mitchell looked at Teal'c. "Teal'c?"

"I feel that same way as Daniel." As he said that he stared intently at Daniel and Vala. They both know what he was saying. Vala whispered to Daniel. "It's that damn Jaffa super-hearing."

"What! You think it should be up to her? That whatever she wants we should just let her do it?" Mitchell was almost yelling at Teal'c.

Sam looked surprised. But she had been surprised by Daniel's reaction, too. She shrugged it off and began grilling Vala with technological questions. Vala declined to answer telling Sam that she would have to discuss it with Thomas and Dr. Lee.

Mitchell wasn't yelling but he looked distressed. "What does Jason think about this?"

"Well, we sort of haven't told him all the details. He's sort of a wuss, Thomas isn't sure that he would agree with our interpretation of risk versus results."

Vala jumped up off of Daniel's lap. "I, for one, am exhausted. It is past our bedtime. Off we go, darling. We can talk about this again at breakfast." She grabbed Daniel's hand and pulled him to the door. "Say good night, Daniel."

Daniel smiled at Sam and Mitchell and said. "Good night, Daniel." He exchanged knowing nods with Teal'c and pushed Vala out the door. Everyone heard their footsteps running up the stairs.

The three remaining members of SG-1 looked at each other in silence. Mitchell sighed and said. "I hate to say it but she's right. There is an awful lot to think about and since she can't do anything until we get back we might as well sleep on it. So off to bed kiddies."

"Indeed!"

Sam said nothing but followed them out the door and up the stairs to her bedroom. There was so much going through her mind that she just needed to get her hands on paper and pen. Sam had an incredibly long list of questions that she needed to write down before she could even think about sleep.

Vala had gone to the bathroom first. She had taken a pair of pink polka dot baby doll pajamas out of a side pocket of her pack with her. Once she returned to their room Daniel went to the bathroom. She was sitting in the middle of the bed on top of the coverlet when he came back. Daniel sat on the bed and took her face in his hands. He kissed her the way he had behind the trees on the walk from the Well of History. As he kissed Vala he pushed her down onto the bed. He was straddling her body with his legs on either side of her hips. Vala pulled away and said. "That's my move Daniel." As she said it she managed to flip him over so that he was on his back and she was straddling his chest. She was leaning down to kiss him when Daniel put his hand over her mouth. Vala sat back and waited. He removed his hands. "You did hear what I said, right? And that was before the whole catatonic thingy. We'll talk to Thomas together but I want to be clear about your answer. I'm taking advantage of all the times I've been told that I'm selfish. I intend to be as selfish as humanly possible. You can't make me fall in love with you and expect anything else. And I know that you can't refuse me anything!"

Vala replied. "Okay."

"Okay. That's settled. Let's see who can't refuse who and how many times between now and breakfast."

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Teal'c, Sam and Mitchell had been at breakfast for a good thirty minutes before Vala and Daniel came down the stairs. As the three of them had started down the stairs Vala and Daniel had slipped into the bathroom. They could hear the water running before they got to the bottom. While they ate they could faintly hear splashing and laughter from the bathroom.

Daniel's hair was wet and Vala had her hair wrapped in a towel around her head. They smiled saying good morning and sat across from each other. They hadn't held hands when they entered the room and there were no private smiles or longing glances. Mya had placed juice, fruit and bread on the table when Teal'c, Sam and Mitchell had first come down. After Vala and Daniel arrived Mya brought in more of everything. Mya smiled at them all then walked up to Vala and kissed her forehead. "I am glad that you spoke with your friends. Before you leave I would like to speak to you for a moment, if that is all right."

"Of course, Mya." Mya left the room leaving SG-1 alone.

The silence was beginning to become awkward when Daniel spoke. "Vala and I were talking about what the people told us last night in the context of the information or rather the lack of information in the Well of History."

Mitchell refrained from making any cracks about the two of them finding time to talk. For which Sam was grateful. Teal'c smiled at both Vala and Daniel.

"I thought about what you said Mitchell." Vala poked him in the ribs with a spoon. "Okay, Vala thought we should consider what you said about the people reminding you of aliens you had read about in a mission report"

Vala couldn't contain her self any longer. "Nox! We think they're Nox!"

Sam looked puzzled. "Why wouldn't they know they were Nox?

"Indeed."

Daniel and Vala grinned at each other. Vala started. "We have a theory about that. But you should explain it, Darling. You're the one with the experience."

"It may sound crazy and we aren't completely sure..."

Mitchell broke in. "Come on. Spit it out!"

"We think that they were a small group, perhaps a colony or outpost, of Nox who were not living on the Nox home planet."

Vala broke in. "They were more spiritually advanced and they all ascended."

Vala looked like she was going to jump up and dance. "Tell them Daniel. It is just perfect!"

"I think that they were too nice and too good. They couldn't help but interfere in the lives of the non-ascended. So they got kicked out, all of them, at once. I think that it was the first time a group was kicked out. They must have woken up naked on this planet. All of them at once. There was no one from their culture to help them regain their memories. I don't know the answers about the buildings on this planet, the structure of their society, exactly what information and knowledge they were left with, and so on."

Sam asked. "Are you going to tell them your ideas? Are you going to talk to the Nox?"

Daniel replied. "I'm not sure. I don't want to talk to them until I have more answers. And I don't want to talk to the Nox until I have more questions."

"This is most interesting, Daniel Jackson. General O'Neill has always admired the Nox."

By this time they had finished their breakfast and returned to their rooms for their packs. As they gathered outside of the inn Mitchell explained their plan. "Teal'c and I will break camp. The three of you check on Rayna. If she wants to come with us today have her pack a bag. Whatever happens we'll meet you at the Gate in two hours."

Sam and Daniel headed towards Rayna's house and Vala stayed behind to talk to Mya. They went into the small sitting room under the stairs and talked about Vala's future plans. They spoke for half an hour and ended up crying together at least twice before they left the inn.

Rayna was with Sam and Daniel crossing the town square. There were no other villagers in the town aside from Mya. Daniel picked up Rayna's bag and the four of them walked out of town on the trail to the Stargate.

SG-1 and Rayna met at the gate as scheduled. Mitchell had radioed SGC command and they were expecting them. Daniel was dialing the DHD when people began to materialize around them. Soon the grove was filled with people laughing; they were hugging SG-1 and kissing Rayna good-bye. Jax was encouraging them to return and asking them to please watch over Rayna. After a few minutes only Mya and Jax remained and as Teal'c, Daniel, Vala, Sam, Mitchell and Rayna walked through the gate they smiled and waved. Mitchell was the last to enter assuring them. "She'll be safe, I promise. And we'll return in five days."


	24. Chapter 24

Rayna looked around in surprise as they walked through the gate onto the ramp in SGC. She laughed and pulled a woven sack out of her bag. "Mya packed us lunch and a snack. She wasn't sure how far a journey it would be from the gate to your village."

Vala grabbed the bag and started rummaging through it. "Mya is such a great person. She knows that food is the most important thing about traveling." Vala pulled out a large piece of fruit and sunk her teeth into it.

Daniel took the bag from her hand. "I don't think that this is the time for stuffing your face, Vala. I'm sure that Dr. Lam would rather that you wait until after your medical check-in." He didn't try and take the fruit away from her but sighed and walked down the ramp.

Vala stuck her tongue out at his back and followed close behind. Mitchell took Rayna by the arm and guided her down the ramp to be met by Landry.

"Welcome Miss …?"

"Please call me Rayna."

"Welcome, Rayna, to SGC and to Earth. You're our honored guest. Please let me know if you need or want anything. Colonel Mitchell please accompany Rayna to see Dr. Lam. You can join SG-1 in the Briefing Room after your check-up and leave Rayna in Dr. Lam's capable hands."

SG-1's check-up was brief and the team headed towards the locker rooms to grab showers before the meeting. Mitchell moved back against the wall outside the men's locker room and motioned to the rest of the team to join him. He spoke quietly, just above a whisper. "Vala? Daniel? I was going to ask you before we left the planet but I got sidetracked by the phantom munchkins phasing in and out. What do you want me to put in the mission report about the two of you?"

Both of them looked at Mitchell with quizzical expressions. Vala spoke first. "What about us?" He didn't answer but looked pained as he gave her a "you know exactly what I'm talking about" look.

Daniel opened his mouth but Vala put her hand on his shoulder saying. "Darling, let me handle this."

"Do you usually report details about team sleeping arrangements? If Sam shares a tent with Teal'c or you, is that information germane to the mission? Should someone be informing Landry that you may have a serious medical problem?" Vala asked her questions with a sly look on her face.

"What do you mean medical problem?"

Smiling Vala asked. "Well, why else would it take Dr. Lam three times as long to clear you as it does the rest of the team? And how can we explain the numerous times that I found Dr. Lam in her office with the door locked when I go to get a snack late in the evenings? Rumor has it that I have been known to listen at doors in my time."

Mitchell blushed. "Okay. You got it. No reason to mention anything about the two of you, beyond your Nox theory. And I think I deserve at least a footnote in your report for my memory."

The team split off to go to their respective locker rooms. Vala looked back and gave Daniel a small wave as she opened the door.

Daniel wasn't sure what he had expected to happen when they returned to SGC. Vala had made sure that Mitchell didn't say anything, except maybe a precautionary word or two to Dr. Lam. Vala knew that Sam and Teal'c would follow the lead set by him and Vala. He was surprised to find himself a little disappointed that Vala hadn't flew through the gate yelling about them to everyone at SGC. Daniel hadn't been looking forward to the fallout when they returned but Vala's behavior made their return somewhat anticlimactic. He must have looked puzzled. Sam took pity on him. "What did you expect Daniel? Vala knows that she has you exactly where she wants you. It doesn't matter to her if anyone else knows or not, she doesn't need any public declaration of love from you. In fact I wouldn't be surprised if she likes it being a secret, at least for now. Sneaking into closets and empty rooms would be a lot like ducking behind trees." When Sam mentioned trees Daniel realized that somehow Sam must have seen them as they approached the village. Thinking about their walk to the village made Daniel think about their night in the Well of History.

"Sam, would you mind taking your shower in your quarters?"

"I don't mind at all, Daniel. By the way there's a lock on the inside of this door." Daniel smiled back as the door closed and she heard the lock click. Sam took a quick look down the hall and when she didn't seen anyone she slipped into a nearby supply closet. When she came out she had a chain in her hand that she hung over the door knob. There was a CLOSED sign attached to the chain.

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Mitchell walked into the Briefing Room with Rayna by his side. Daniel and Vala were sitting across from each other; Sam was next to Daniel and Teal'c next to Vala. General Landry came in as Mitchell was showing Rayna where to sit. Mitchell sat next to Teal'c and Rayna was next to Sam. Landry sat at the head of the table.

"I want to welcome you again Rayna. My people tell me that you have offered to help us fight the Ori."

Rayna interrupted. "I am sorry if that is what you were told. We will not fight and we will not help you fight anyone or anything. We will be more than happy to share our knowledge regarding hiding and confusing the Ori or any enemies. But violence is not an option for us. I thank you for your time, I shall return home now."

Landry was surprised and looked at Mitchell. "I thought they wanted to help us?"

Daniel started to speak but Mitchell cut him off. It was his decision to bring Rayna back to SGC. "Her people do want to help us and they can help us. And not just us, they can help the people on planets where the Ori are forcibly converting them. If we can help those people avoid the Ori they can be safe until we finish them off. We don't want to make soldiers out of the innocent people on those planets. We want to save them from being wiped out. And in dire cases Jax has agreed to take in refugees from the Ori. They choose not to kill and they have the luxury of not having to kill in order to save themselves and their home. Actually I think that I'm a little jealous of them."

Landry had nodded during Mitchell's speech. It wasn't clear whether or not he was agreeing with Mitchell or contemplating a court martial.

Mitchell continued. "It was my decision to bring Rayna here. I feel strongly that she will be an asset in the days to come. But if you feel that I made a mistake then, with your permission I'll escort her back through the gate."

"Not so fast young man. I'm not disagreeing with you. I think we should discuss the situation with Rayna. Would that be okay with you Miss?"

Rayna asked. "I don't want to be a problem but would it be okay if I sat next to Vala?"

Teal'c got up and switched chairs with Rayna. Vala smiled at Rayna as she sat down next to her. Daniel couldn't help but ask her. "Why do you want to sit next to Vala? Teal'c is not from Earth also. Or do you prefer to sit next to another woman? We don't know much about your culture but we want to learn."

Rayna smiled and spoke directly to Landry. "I do not want to offend you, but though we are non-violent, we are not gullible fools. I can read Vala's emotions and I will know if she feels you are being honest and trustworthy. If you are able to fool her than I will face the consequences of her and my naivety. However I doubt if Vala is easy to fool, so I feel confident trusting her emotions."

Sam looked concerned as she asked Rayna. "I thought that it was difficult for you to be close to Vala, that her feelings overwhelmed you?"

Rayna reached across the table and took Sam's hand. "Thank you for your concern. But I have been able to adjust my reactions, I can't yet block out all of her thoughts and feelings, but it is no longer so uncomfortable. In fact here, where I am truly alone for the first time, it is comforting to feel her. Vala is such a sad but sweet soul that it causes me no pain."

Vala looked embarrassed as Rayna spoke. Daniel looked depressed as he looked at Vala. Rayna caught Daniel's expression and felt badly.

"Her sadness has recently been lightened. It may never be gone completely. The pain from one's past does not disappear but it doesn't have to in order to become whole again. The pain will remain forever a part of her but with the right help love will ease the pain." Rayna continued to look at General Landry as she spoke about Vala. Daniel knew that she was really talking to him and was grateful. Rayna was pleased to see Daniel smile. His love for Vala poured into Rayna's consciousness through Vala.

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Thomas heard that SG-1 was back on base. He had called Jason to tell him the news. Thomas wanted to meet with Vala and Jason as soon as possible to finalize their plans. His next call was to Dr. Lee. Everything was falling into place. He and Jason would be able to accomplish so much good with their work. He was excited about seeing Vala; he knew how thrilled she would be to begin their work. She was a gentle and kind person whose need to atone for her imagined sins would inspire her to ignore caution for the overall good. It upset Thomas when he thought how she was perceived as selfish by so many at SGC. It just showed how a clever façade could hide so much of the truth about a person. Late at night he would wake up terrified worrying about what might happen to Vala when their project destroyed that façade and what else the process might destroy. Thomas worried but he didn't feel any guilt. If there was anyway that he could take the risk in her place he would do so gladly. But he didn't have the luxury of that option, and he knew how eager Vala was to be useful, needed and valued.

Thomas had convinced himself that he didn't feel guilty, yet he couldn't bring himself to explain to Jason the possible ramifications of their plan and what could happen to Vala as a result. Thomas hadn't lied to Landry but had managed to gloss over the issue; he mentioned side effects but gave no details. Dr. Lee's tunnel vision once he was caught up in an experiment worked to his advantage.

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Daniel explained to General Landry that Rayna had come to Earth both to help them and to learn about the worlds outside of her home. That she hoped to discover something about the actual history of her people. Landry let SG-1, except Vala, Daniel and Rayna leave the meeting. The four of them had a lengthy discussion about Rayna's situation and how she would work with SGC. Landry asked Daniel to create a team of scientists, both civilian and military, to work with Rayna. It would be an initial taskforce that would make recommendation to SGC regarding the best way to proceed. They would be charged with accomplishing the goals of all parties. Daniel decided he wanted anthropologists, archeologists, psychologists and scientists familiar with phase shifting theories and technology. In spite of his personal interests Daniel decided that he could not assign himself or Sam to the group, and that he would step back and delegate. Landry was pleased since it saved him from forbidding Daniel to join the group. The decision was made that Daniel would come up with a list of potential staff and have Rayna meet with them. Together they would come up with a list of people to be given to General Landry for final confirmation.

Vala felt more nervous the longer the meeting lasted. She didn't want to be a part of the task force; she wanted to stay with SG-1 and continue to work with Daniel. But Vala knew that if Rayna needed her by her side that she couldn't refuse her. Then she heard a voice in her head saying "Thomas". It was unbelievable but Vala had actually forgotten about Thomas and her commitment to their work. Vala could feel herself being torn into pieces, emotionally pulled apart and shattered. The guilt of what she must be doing to Rayna made her feel worse, which of course made her feel even guiltier. In her panic Vala hadn't been listening to their discussion and hadn't noticed that the room was silent. Daniel and Landry were looking at Vala whose face reflected her emotional pain; she was wringing her hands and was close to crying. Vala looked as if she was on the edge of hysterics. Daniel's heart felt as if it was being ripped out and Landry's face reflected his distress at Vala's suffering. It was obvious that both men felt helpless as they stared at Vala.

Rayna, however, was looking at the two men and trying to gauge the depth of their compassion for Vala. Her insight into their true feelings helped her decide to trust Landry and SGC. It also convinced her that she would no longer need to have Vala as her constant companion. Vala's misery had been Rayna's misery and now she could alleviate some of Vala's pain. It was obvious that Vala dreaded having to work with Rayna and the new group but felt too guilty about abandoning Rayna.

"General Landry, I am pleased with your plan and look forward to working with your people. I no longer need Vala by my side. I believe, just as Vala believes, that you are an honorable man."

Rayna's words, saying that she no longer needed her, broke through the fog in her mind. She and Daniel exchanged grins.

Landry stood up saying. "I appreciate that you feel you can trust me, I hope to always live up to that trust. Vala, it seems that I have you to thank for Rayna's trust. I hope that you understand how much that means to me."

Landry pushed back his chair, walked over to Rayna, and pulled out her chair. "Daniel and Vala, perhaps you would show Rayna to her quarters. I expect to have a preliminary proposal from you, Dr. Jackson, no later than tomorrow afternoon. Perhaps, Miss Mal Duran, you would be so kind as to keep him focused on that task." Landry reached out to shake Rayna's hand. He extended his right hand and she reached out and clasped both of her hands over his.

Once Landry had left the room Vala couldn't contain herself. After a quick glance to check that no one could see them she rushed over and hugged Rayna, whispering her thanks. Turning away from Rayna Vala ran towards Daniel at full speed, jumped up wrapping her legs around his waist and her arms around his neck. After a quick hug she dropped down on the floor. "Come along, Rayna. I'll get you settled in your room. Then we can go eat!"

Rayna smiled and followed Vala out the door. Once they were in the hall Daniel said to Vala. "Why don't you take Rayna to her room and let her get settled in, then meet me in my office. We'll both come and get you for dinner Rayna."


	25. Chapter 25

Vala walked Rayna to her room and helped her settle in. Her bag had been delivered and Rayna wanted to wash and then lay down for a rest. It had been an exciting and exhausting day for her. Vala showed her the bathroom, explained how the shower worked and that there was no real bath in the bathroom. Rayna was intrigued by the shower; it turned out that she couldn't have cared less about taking an actual bath. Vala's opinion was if you wanted to get clean the shower was best though tubs were fun for two people. But then so were showers if it was the right two people. Thinking about showers and tubs turned her mind to Daniel. Rayna assured Vala that she would be fine and planned to sleep until she returned. Vala stepped into the hall and headed off to meet Daniel in his office. On her way she made a slight detour to Rose's area, she always stopped in after off-world missions to share stories with the gang. When she had worn their handiwork Vala made a point to let them know how much all of SG-1 appreciated their hard work, skill and attention to detail. Rose would thank her and they would all pretend that they believed SG-1 even knew who they were. Everyone enjoyed Vala's recognition and support. Her insistence that SG-1 shared her appreciation simply served to endear her to them even more.

Vala was in a rush to see Daniel, but there was no way she'd ignore her gang, they'd always been there for her when she'd needed their comfort and friendship. She skipped down the hall to the elevator and rode it up the two floors to the laundry. Rose was standing in the open doorway to the workroom and spotted Vala as she came around the corner.

"Vala! Good to see you. Get in here and tell us about the mission." Rose gave Vala a quick hug and dragged her into her office. "Hey guys. Guess who's here?"

Three other members of her gang were on duty. They were doing hand sewing which they put down on the work table before gathering outside of Rose's office. Vala was sitting on Rose's desk facing the door so she could see everyone. Vala hadn't wanted to embarrass Daniel by telling everyone on base their news, but she had to share her happiness with her people. As Vala opened her mouth to talk she was interrupted.

From the moment Vala arrived Jane had been looking intently at her, squinting her eyes in order to focus in on her face. She grinned at Vala, sighed and loudly proclaimed. "You slept with him."

Everyone knew who Vala's "him" was. Tom frowned at Jane. "There is no way you could tell that." He turned to Vala. "Is it true?"

Vala didn't answer; she was sitting on the desk with her arms around her knees. Hugging herself tightly, Vala's face lit up and she gave them her "Cheshire Cat" grin. They all took that as a yes and started asking about the mission. No one mentioned Daniel again. Everyone knew what it meant to her but they respected her privacy. Rose did lean in and laughingly whispered. "You are such a space slut." In return Vala flashed Rose one of her immense grins.

They knew that Vala would talk to them later, having correctly guessed that she still hadn't figured out tall he consequences of what must have happened between her and Daniel. Openly talking about her sexuality led some people to assume she was equally open about all aspects of her life. Others at SGC might not consider Vala a very private person but her friends knew better. And her gang shared their secrets with Vala confident that they would never be repeated.

As two Airmen walked down the hall they could hear the laughter from the Laundry, they exchanged knowing looks and one said with a smile. "Vala's back."

She was making them laugh with her observations about life on the planet, repeating Mitchell's jokes, how much SG-1 appreciated the bathroom at the inn and the flowers that were everywhere. Then she described the intricate details of the clothing worn by the "Stepford leprechauns" on the planet. Vala caught Rose's attention when she explained a little about how the people were strangely unaware of the history of their culture, how Daniel had theorized that they had been pretty much dumped on their planet with cultural amnesia. Vala and Daniel would be searching for written accounts, folk songs, and fairy tales in their research. Rose knew that she and her people could help. They would compare clothing designs, materials, styles of sewing, etc. to other cultures and possibly provide some context to whatever information turned up in Daniel's search. Vala knew that she didn't have to ask her, Rose had known what Vala was thinking as soon as she started to describe the villagers.

"We'll be happy to help however we can. Once you send me some sketches and arrange for me to speak with Rayna I'll start searching our databases."

"Thanks. Daniel and I'll appreciate whatever you guys are willing to do to help us solve the mystery." Vala wasn't exactly lying, she was sure that Daniel would appreciate it once she told him about it. He wouldn't dismiss anyone's attempts to discover the truth.

Vala jumped off the desk. "I've got to fly guys. I'm meeting Daniel and then we're going to eat."

They all laughed when Tom said. "Daniel and food, two of your favorite things in all the world, Vala. Though in what order? Would Daniel win out over food?"

Vala appeared to seriously think about the question. "I don't think anything wins out over blue jell-o." She blew them a kiss as she skipped out of the workroom and into the hall.

Rose looked at her team and sighed. "It's about time."

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Vala walked into Daniel's office where he was sitting at his desk trying to translate some of the writing they had found on the wall in the Well of History. He had about ten large reference books in a precarious pile around the copy of the text that he was trying to read, He looked up when he heard Vala enter the room.

"I was wondering where you were. Did you and Rayna have any problems?"

"No, she's fine. I just had an errand to run."

Vala walked over to Daniel's desk. She hadn't been nervous until she was in the elevator. When they had walked through the gate Vala hadn't expected Daniel to shout out that he was in love with her. Daniel probably expected her to, and she had to admit that it had crossed her mind for a split second. Then Mitchell stopped to check with them how they wanted him to handle their new relationship. Vala and Daniel had been caught off guard by his question; in fact they hadn't gotten around to discussing it with each other before they left. They had been fixated on each other most of the time and then focused on their ascended Nox theory and hadn't talked about any future plans. Daniel had said that he wasn't going to let her out of his sight for the next forty years, but he'd whispered it only to her. Vala knew Daniel loved her; she just wasn't sure what that would mean once they returned to Earth. He'd had the perfect love and perfect marriage with the frelling perfect Sha're, they'd shared the ultimate fairy tale romance. Before Daniel could say anything to Mitchell she'd jumped in and eliminated the need for Daniel to answer. Vala wanted to give him time and space, he loved her but that didn't mean that he was ready to completely integrate her into his life.

Vala was standing behind his chair not saying anything. Daniel swiveled his chair around, stood up and took her face between his hands. Smiling Daniel asked "Are you okay? You look so serious." There was no expression on her face and her eyes looked sad. Daniel knew she loved him but felt that something was pulling her away from him. She seemed so tentative. He hoped her old spirit would return soon, even as he thought it he remembered the old saying, "be very careful what you wish for, you might just get it", which made him laugh out loud. Daniel leaned towards Vala to kiss her when she put her hands on his shoulders and pushed him away.

Daniel had looked so sweet when he smiled at her that it terrified Vala. She berated herself that she would even think that she could be happy, let alone be responsible for someone else's happiness. She had indulged herself with childish fantasies for long enough and the sooner this was put to an end the better it would be for all involved. She would be doing Daniel a favor; in fact she figured that she would destroy "them" because she loved Daniel. Vala had read Hamlet say that you had to be cruel to be kind and that's what she meant to do. Daniel would be better off without her and eventually she would be better off without him. For a moment the pain in her stomach made Vala think she just might be wrong about that. But Vala was, if nothing else, an expert at repressing her feelings.

Vala stepped away from Daniel before he could kiss her. "Serious? What are you talking about? I couldn't be happier." We may have found people who can help us with the Ori, those same people may be ascended Nox and we just finished a most enjoyable dalliance on planet, what shall we call it, PX-Nox perhaps. Remember Daniel, what happens on PX-Nox stays on PX-Nox." Vala gave Daniel one of her widest grins and started to walk backwards out of the room. "I'll get Rayna and meet everyone for dinner."

"Stop, Vala. Right now! You aren't going anywhere!" Daniel yelled at Vala before she made her escape out the door.

Vala kept smiling but stopped in the door jamb. She wasn't sure what Daniel was going to say but she had withstood torture before and was sure that she could handle anything. Vala had a lot more experience enduring pain than enduring love. Pain becomes your friend after a while; it reminds you that you are alive.

Daniel was now smiling at Vala. "I'm so glad to hear you say that. I was terrified that you might think our time there together had any real meaning. I was thrilled when you told Cam to ignore what happened between us; I realized that you understood how awful it would have been." Daniel smiled, disarming Vala enough to let him get close. She noticed he had a very strange scary look in his eyes. He didn't look angry so much as crazed.

"My God, Vala. Can you just imagine it? The sheer horror of it. The two of us spend an amazing three days together, and admit we're madly in love. With each other, no less. Then we share out happiness with our friends and all the people of planet "It's a small world". Think of what you saved me from. True love, happiness, fulfillment, a meaningful existence, I could go on. Did I mention true love?"

Vala wasn't sure what he was saying or what exactly she was hearing. She hadn't been sure how he would react, but it wasn't this. Vala looked as confused as she felt. Daniel smiled at her expression, put his arms around her and pulled her tightly to his chest. He put his mouth close to her ear kissing and nibbling on her ear as he continued.

"Vala, you really thought you could get out of this so easily? Get out while the getting's good. Save someone from themselves by not allowing them to be in love with you. The good old self-fulfilling prophecy of a loveless and lonely life. It hurts me more than it hurts you." Vala was severely distracted by Daniel's mouth but somehow she managed to listen to every word he said.

"Did you imagine that I wouldn't know what you were trying to do? I am the master of emotional self-destructive behavior. Been there, done that, got the tee-shirt." He started moving his kisses around from her ear to her face and eventually her lips. At the same time he pulled Vala back into the room and shut the door behind her. He pushed her body hard up against the back of the door and as she tried to talk he kissed her using his tongue to keep her quiet. She responded to his kiss and Daniel undid the top button of her shirt moving down undoing one button at a time until he reached the bottom. He pulled the unbuttoned shirt out of the waistband of her pants and started to peel her shirt off of her shoulders and then stopped cold. He backed up and walked to his desk. "Sorry. I forgot that we weren't doing the relationship thing anymore. My bad." He barely managed to turn around in time to catch her in his arms before he was knocked to the floor. They crumpled to the floor in a tangle of arms and legs. Daniel was laughing and Vala was kissing any piece of bare skin she could find, most of which ended up being on Daniel's face. They ended up with Daniel on his back and Vala straddling his chest. Instantly both of them flashed back to the Prometheus. Vala rolled off of Daniel and they laid on the floor, side by side, laughing.

Daniel struggled up to his feet and walked to his desk. He started reading the text, as he heard Vala stand up he asked. "Hey kiddo, come and take a look at this with me. I've been trying to find some sort of pattern to this writing." Vala came up behind him and leaned over his shoulder. "This is a copy of the text from the wall; it doesn't make any more sense now then it did when we first looked at it."

"Daniel, I hate to say it but I think we have to consider if the Ancients destroyed everything about their culture for a reason. What if they weren't kicked out because they were so good that they couldn't resist interfering to help people? What if they weren't nice at all but kind of evil? Maybe they interfered but in a really bad way?"


	26. Chapter 26

_**Previously:**_

_**Daniel struggled up to his feet and walked to his desk. He started reading the text, as he heard Vala stand up he asked. "Hey kiddo, come and take a look at this with me. I've been trying to find some sort of pattern to this writing." Vala came up behind him and leaned over his shoulder. "This is a copy of the text from the wall; it doesn't make any more sense now then it did when we first looked at it."**_

"_**Daniel, I hate to say it but I think we have to consider if the Ancients destroyed everything about their culture for a reason. What if they weren't kicked out because they were so good that they couldn't resist interfering to help people? What if they weren't nice at all but kind of evil? Maybe they interfered but in a really bad way?"**_

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Daniel looked at her in shock. "Vala, do you really think that's possible? I thought that you liked them, even trusted them?"

"Well, I do like Mya. But I could do without that blonde Heidi character Rayna. Why would she want to leave her home, her people, and her family? For what, knowledge of the origin of her planet? Seems a little hinky to me."

"Darling, is that a dig at me?" Vala looked at Daniel as if he had two heads. "Or is it that you can't imagine anyone voluntarily leaving a loving home? Especially knowing what life might hold for them out there in the real world?"

"Maybe. Maybe not." Vala pulled up a chair next to Daniel. "Whatever, let's start over again, from the beginning. We are not going to let this anomalous claptrap defeat us."

"What has Thomas been having you read? Your vocabulary has gotten quite eclectic of late."

Vala gave Daniel a look that said "you'll have to do better than that to throw me".

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Jason was excited about getting to see Vala and Thomas was driving him crazy. It must have been at least ten minutes since Thomas had called the Commissary to make sure that SG-1 was there. "What the hell is taking you so long Thomas? No one cares what you're wearing. Let's get going."

Thomas pulled a sweater over his head saying. "Jason, there is no need to race over there. You know Vala doesn't eat and run, or at least she does a lot of eating before she runs." Thomas was glad to see Jason smile at his feeble attempt at a joke. He was always telling him to lighten up and get a sense of humor.

They stood at the door looking for SG-1. Thomas spotted them at a table in the far corner. He watched the interactions of the group while Jason was still looking around the room. As usual he focused on Vala first, she was such a vibrant presence in the room he always felt he could feel her energy from across any room. Then there was her smile and her laugh. She was smiling at a petite blond woman sitting directly across the table. According to the rumor mill she was an alien and had something to do with the Ori. Teal'c and Mitchell were next to Vala with Sam and Daniel next to the alien. Mitchell, Sam and Vala were engrossed in an animated conversation with the blond woman. Daniel was quietly talking to Teal'c, but every so often he would look over at Vala and smile. Daniel was relaxed and Vala seemed to be unaware of his attention. That was so out of character for both of them that Thomas suspected that something had happened between them. Vala's voice rose above the crowd and then she started to laugh. As the volume increased Teal'c glanced at Daniel who was staring at Vala with what appeared to be admiration. Looking up Teal'c caught Thomas's eye. He raised his eyebrow in recognition and smiled knowingly when he saw Thomas's eyes move back and forth between Vala and Daniel. Thomas had often seen that look on Daniel's face, but before you would see him catch himself, then look around to make sure that no one had seen him. Now he simply watched Vala, oblivious to anyone else, obviously not concerned about anyone noticing. In the past when Thomas would see Daniel's stolen looks at Vala he would observe Teal'c watching Daniel watch Vala. A few times later it was almost a comedy routine. Thomas would watch Daniel watching Vala. Then he would watch Teal'c watch Daniel watching Vala. Then Thomas would watch Teal'c watch him watch Daniel watching Vala. Abbott and Costello had nothing on them. So Thomas nodded at Teal'c in understanding

Jason put his hand on Thomas's sleeve saying. "There they are, let's get something to eat and join them. We get to see our girl and meet the alien of the week at the same time. What could be better?"

Thomas answered Jason. "Sure. Observe Daniel and Vala closely, I think something unusual's going on."

The two men took their trays and got into line. Once they had their meal Jason waved and caught Vala's attention. She jumped up and motioned them to join her. Vala introduced her friends to Rayna saying that she was a new friend. Rayna smiled and nodded, she gave no outward sign that she recognized their names. Mya had spoken to her at length about Vala and the one called Thomas, she was expecting Rayna's evaluation of the man's character when she returned home in a few days. Jason seemed to be a kind and gentle soul, genuinely interested in the people he spoke to. He reminded her of Jax. Thomas was strong, maybe even hard. It wasn't that he seemed to be bad; in fact she could tell that he was a good and noble man. But Rayna sensed that he when he was sure that he was right that his conviction could lead him astray. She would need to spend time with him and engage him in conversation before she would be comfortable deciding what to tell Maya.

Jason kept Thomas's words in mind as they ate. If anything, Jason was more intuitive than Thomas and easily picked up on the changes in Daniel and Vala's relationship. He couldn't imagine being happier about seeing any couple together than these two. Vala smile was often brittle when she interacted with Daniel and the hurt in her eyes was painful to see. Now that pain and sadness was gone, not expertly covered up by an experienced liar, but missing. They weren't sitting together but it felt to Jason as if they were touching and sparks were flying. Jason turned to look at Thomas to let him know what he had seen. He saw Thomas looking at Vala, but to Jason's surprise he didn't look exactly happy for them. He shrugged it off assuming that he had misread his expression and resolving to discuss the matter with Thomas at the first chance he got.

Seemingly out of the blue Mitchell asked. "So Thomas, when are you going to take our Vala off to Washington?" The question seemed innocuous on the surface but Jason felt strong disturbing undercurrents in his voice, Mitchell's tone seemed almost hostile towards Thomas.

"We haven't finalized our plans yet, Colonel Mitchell. Vala, why don't we make plans to meet and discuss the next step in our project? How about tomorrow morning, right after breakfast?"

Daniel looked directly into Thomas's eyes. "I think we could work that into our schedule. How about it, darling?" Jason was amazed at how natural it felt to hear Daniel call Vala darling.

Vala nervously looked back and forth between Thomas and Daniel as if she was trying to make up her mind. Vala make her decision, smiled at Daniel and said. "That would be perfect, Thomas. Should we meet you here or come to your office?"

Daniel turned towards Jason and said. "Why don't you and Thomas meet us here at 8?" He turned back to look at Thomas. "We all know how much more cooperative Vala is if she's been fed."

Before Thomas could say anything Jason answered for both of them. "That's a plan. We'll meet you here at 8." He stood up, picked up his tray and said. "Goodbye guys. Sorry to leave but we have to go back to work. We're meeting with Dr. Lee. It was a pleasure to meet you Rayna. I hope that we will get a chance to spend more time together while you're here."

That pleased Rayna; she had wondered how she would arrange to spend more time with Thomas. "Perhaps we could meet for lunch. I would be interested in discussing Tau'ri psychology with both of you." Acting as if she may have unintentionally overstepped her bounds she appealed to Daniel. "Of course, only if you think it might be productive, Dr. Jackson. It's just that from the little bit of reading I've done it occurred to me that there may be insights that we could share."

Daniel wanted to be fair and not let his personal unease about Thomas interfere with Rayna's project. "No, I think that's an excellent idea. Thomas, I'm sure that you'll be intrigued by Rayna's abilities. I'll send you a copy of the mission report within the hour."

Thomas and Jason bused their trays and left the room. Rayna decided not to respond to the obvious tension in the air, it would be better if SG-1 didn't know why she wanted to meet with Thomas. It was easy for her to appear unaware since each member of the team was concentrating so hard on their own reactions. She did notice Teal'c looking at her as if he wanted to speak with her. She smiled and nodded to let him know that they would meet soon.

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"Thomas, what the hell was going on with Mitchell? And did you catch the look on Sam's face when he asked about Washington? And then again when Dr. Lee's name came up?" Jason had started grilling Thomas the minute he closed the office door. "Is there something that you haven't told me?"

Thomas tried to mollify Jason. "Not at all. I can't imagine what's wrong with Mitchell and Sam. I do know that all of SG-1 is under a lot of pressure about the Ori." In an attempt to distract him Thomas said. "I'm excited about reading the report on Rayna and her people. I hope that Dr. Jackson follows through and send us a copy tonight. What do you think he might have meant by Rayna's abilities?"

Jason had also been intrigued by Daniel's words. But he wasn't ready to give up the topic of SG-1. Thomas could tell that Jason wasn't going to give up so he tried another diversion. "So, how about Daniel and Vala? Did you see that coming? Not that I'm not happy for both of them."

"She looked happy and amazingly comfortable being happy. Do you think the changes you helped Vala make were the precipitating factor? I have to believe that he was the aggressor."

"I've been thinking about that since I saw them. As concerned about Vala as I am, I have to be fair to Daniel. I don't believe that he noticed the changes or that he was driven to declare himself because he was jealous. It was never about Vala's inappropriate behavior. He knew that Sha're, the shy, naïve daughter of the tribal leader who was given, in gratitude, as a gift to a strange man, would've had a difficult time integrating into Earth society, too. It was easier to deflect his feelings by criticizing Vala for the things that most attracted him. He had to forgive himself for falling in love with her before he could admit it to himself. I think that once he did that, the next logical step was to act on his feelings. While Daniel may tend to over analyze and over think everything, once he reaches a conclusion he would more forward to the logical conclusion. To be completely honest I suspect that any changes in her appearance and demeanor most likely served to remind him think of what he valued about her." He assured Jason. "I truly am happy for both of them. The timing might be somewhat inconvenient."

Jason gave Thomas a questioning look asking. "What do you mean inconvenient? Inconvenient for whom? What are you talking about?"

"There's bound to be a honeymoon phase and Vala might consider her involvement with our project a lower priority than before. And I'm sure Daniel will prefer to keep her close and not take off on a cross country trip right away."

"Thomas, I'm sure that Daniel will understand what Vala can offer to help the victims. He may want to accompany her but do you really think that he would deny her such an opportunity? Why don't we invite him to come with us?"

Thomas was saved from having to answer Jason by a knock on the door. An airman asked Thomas to sign for an envelope and left the room. It was from Daniel Jackson and contained the report on Rayna and her planet. Thomas flipped through the first pages his eyes growing wider at each page. "Jason, this is unbelievable! I've got to read this now, immediately; we'll have to finish our talk later." He continued to turn the pages when a second copy slid out from under the first and fell to the floor. Thomas bent down to retrieve the report and saw a sticky note stuck to the first page with Jason's name on it. "Thank you, Daniel Jackson. I'm with Vala, I love you." Jason stared at him as if he'd lost his mind. "The nice man sent you your own copy Jason."

As Thomas handed the report to him Jason took it in his hand replying. "I love him, too."

They sat down and started to read. Occasionally one of them would make a comment, swear, or laugh out loud. Jason had grabbed a notebook and pen before he sat down and was soon scribbling away. Neither one of them gave any further thought to their previous interrupted conversation.

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After dinner Mitchell offered to walk Rayna back to her room but Teal'c had already taken her arm and was walking her out through the door. "I will be glad to show Rayna the way to her quarters, the way can be confusing. Especially if you have not spent time in this type of Tau'ri building." Teal'c smiled goodbye to the rest of the team.

Vala asked "What was that? Is muscles interested in blondie?"

Mitchell answered. "It looks that way to me. Though I would have thought he would go for more of the Xena, Warrior Princess type. Don't you think so Vala?""

"Ishta hasn't been at SGC in quite awhile. Rumor has it that she may be involved with someone else." Sam looked surprised at her mention of rumors about Teal'c's love life. Vala added. "What? Some of those Jaffa warriors are the biggest gossips around."

Daniel was unable to resist saying it. "Indeed."

Sam and Mitchell headed out the door with Vala and Daniel right behind them. Between the door and the elevator Daniel had put his hand over Vala's, not quite holding hands they turned towards Daniel's lab when Sam and Mitchell got on the elevator. They were both headed home but Cam planned a quick detour to the infirmary before he actually left the SGC. They agreed to meet for breakfast before eight o'clock, they wanted a chance to talk before Jason and Thomas showed up.

Vala and Daniel went into Daniel's office. Vala sat on his desk watching him stuff a briefcase with papers, books and photographs of various alien texts. "Ready to go Vala?"

"Go where?" Vala wasn't sure what was going on but chose to wait and follow Daniel's lead. "What's that junk for? Are we going to another lab to work on translations?"

"Aren't you tired, darling? I'd need to have some work to keep in your room. I've been known to wake up at all sorts of hours of the night with an inspiration about my work. There's no way I'll want to leave and come back here. I want to pick up some stuff from my room on the way to your quarters, are you ready?"

"My quarters?"

"You've seen my room. Jack refers to it as my monastic cell. I don't spend much time there; I usually end up sleeping in my office or one of the labs. But I've been in your room. It's comfortable. There's furniture, plants, paintings on the walls, satin sheets and even stuffed animals. Unless you'd rather sleep by yourself?"

Vala didn't bother to answer; she grinned at Daniel, picked up the briefcase and pulled him towards the door.

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Vala woke up from one of her usual nightmares. Lately she had been considering either numbering or naming them. She wasn't sure if it would help to tell herself that she had woken up from dream number 34, but the idea made her laugh. Which was good, any thing to do with her nightmares that made her laugh was a victory. Plus laughter made her feel just a little more in control, which was also good. She laid still and slowly opened her eyes. Vala always held her breath when she woke up praying that she really had been dreaming and was no longer trapped within Qetesh. There was a dim light coming from the corner of the room. The only thing there was a small desk and a chair. The desk lamp was on but the shade had been turned so it faced the wall and diffused the light. Slowly turning her head she could just make out a figure sitting at the desk. She called out softly. "Daniel? Are you all right? Is there something wrong?"

The figure at the desk turned towards the bed and she could see his face. "I'm sorry. Did I wake you? I can go to my office if I'm disturbing you." As he spoke he walked over to the bed. He pushed her body aside with his hip to make enough room to sit next to her. She sat up and leaned against his shoulder. Daniel put his right arm around her and pulled her close.

"Are you kidding me, darling? Trust me my waking up had nothing to do with you. I think that I have you to thank for the fact that I slept, nightmare free, for as many hours as I did. I must have slept for almost five hours." Vala looked at Daniel in amazement. "I just might have to keep you around Daniel."

Vala pushed him away and jumped out of bed. She ran into the bathroom and as she closed the door yelled. "I'm going to take a shower and go get food."

Daniel heard the shower turn on and in less than five minutes Vala came out of the bathroom in a tee shirt and sweat pants. Her hair was wrapped in a towel and her feet were bare. Daniel was still sitting on the bed and watching her lean over from the waist vigorously rubbing her hair with the towel. She straightened back up, smiled and walked over to the bed. There was a comb on the bedside table and Vala began dragging it through her damp hair, once it was untangled she pulled the pink scrunchie off of the comb handle and put it around her wrist. Using one hand she pulled her hair back into a low pony tail and used the scrunchie to hold it in place. Vala bent over and took Daniel's face between her hands saying. "I'm off to forage. Catch you later. Love you." She looked deeply into his eyes and moved in closer to kiss him. He moved more quickly, simultaneously pulling her into his arms and kissing her thoroughly. As he kissed her he pulled her on top of his body. Letting go of her mouth he asked? "Do you want me to go with you?"

Still on top of his chest Vala asked. "Would you go eat now if you were back in your office alone?"

"No. But that doesn't mean I don't want to go with you."

Laughing she slid off of him until she could easily stand up. "Darling, it's not like we aren't going to spend lots of time eating together. In a few hours we'll be meeting the rest of the guys for breakfast. Ralph, in the Commissary, will start to worry if I don't show up soon. He expects to see me around this time when I'm not off-world. He'll have something special waiting for me. Ralph's been taking a French cooking class and this week it's stews. He calls them something else but you can't fool me. Whatever they're called they are the most delicious stews you can imagine." She gave him a quick kiss and headed for the door. "See ya later, alligator."

Without skipping a beat Daniel replied. "After while, crocodile."

Vala stopped and looked back at Daniel. "We'll find each later. We'll always find each other, my Daniel."

The door closed and he moved over to the desk straightening the lamp shade back to its normal position. He looked towards the door, sighed and picked up a reference book. With seconds he was once again completely enthralled in his work.

Vala leaned back against the door to her room and smiled. All was right with the world. Daniel was working and she would soon be eating with her gang. That thought made her think of Ralph and his stew as she skipped down the empty, silent hall towards the Commissary.


	27. Chapter 27

Vala and a few of her friends were in the Commissary eating Ralph's Poulet Bonne Femme. They had decided that Ralph could call it whatever he wanted as long as they got to eat it. Ralph enjoyed cooking but it was especially rewarding to cook for Vala. Her approach to eating was dead serious; she would joke about anything, except food. Her obvious enjoyment was a real compliment to the cook.

Ralph was a child of the Age of Aquarius. People were always telling him that he looked like Burl Ives. He and his wife had met in Haight-Ashbury and Ralph preferred to think that he looked like the older Lawrence Ferlinghetti. It was an odd yet interesting tale as to how he ended up in the Air Force. A story he rarely shared with anyone. Vala was the first person at SGC to know his history.

The first time he met Vala it was the middle of the night. She had walked back into the kitchen when she didn't find anyone eating in the Commissary. Ralph was chopping vegetables and she quickly hopped up onto the counter. He immediately grabbed her around the waist, swung her off the counter and gently put her down on the floor saying. "Sorry little missy. But there are Health Department laws about food preparation areas, which means you can't sit your butt anywhere near where I'm cooking." He pointed to a high stool in the corner of the room. "Go ahead and pull that over here. You can watch and keep me company if you'd like."

Vala had dragged the stool up to the counter and they talked, joked and cooked for close to three hours.

The two of them had quickly bonded. Ralph shared stories of his escapades during the Summer of Love and in return he'd been regaled with the pirate adventures of Vala. When the early breakfast crowd started to trickle into the Commissary there were strange noises coming out of the kitchen. People would stick their heads into the kitchen and upon seeing Vala and Ralph laughing so hard that they were crying they would smile and back out of the room. During the night Vala and Ralph had finished preparing breakfast including a new dish, created in her honor, Pirate Gold egg bake.

Their friendship had continued and late at night after particularly vivid nightmares she would wander into the kitchen and pull up her stool. Sometimes to simply sit and watch him work. Other times Vala would talk about her life or Ralph about his. He felt comfortable talking to Vala. Their take on the world was remarkably similar and their sense of humor equally irreverent.

It was a very slow night and Ralph had joined them at the table. Vala was explaining about the changed situation between her and Daniel. She loved idle gossip herself but felt she owed it to Daniel to tell the truth, perhaps a sanitized version, but the truth all the same. Rumors had started to fly as soon as SG-1 arrived back on base. Daniel joining Vala in the shower was old news by the time Vala had spoken to Rose and the laundry crew. Vala described them as a "couple", she was pretty sure that was the correct term. More than "dating" but less than in a "relationship". Her friends nodded as if they believed her. They didn't bother to tell her that where Daniel had slept that night was common knowledge.

Her friend Peter was in charge of base Facilities and one of his responsibilities was the living quarters for non-military personnel which included everything from Daniel's room to the VIP suites.

"Vala, I'm going to make a few changes in your quarters if you don't mind. We'll keep it between ourselves, maintenance and the cleaning crew." Peter smiled at her and waited for her questions.

"Is it a secret? You know how much I love secrets. Though it can't be much of a secret if you tell everyone here, plus maintenance and cleaning. I give up." She gave him one of her million dollar smiles and batted her eyelashes at him. "I'll beg if I have to!"

"I have some furniture that's going into storage but I thought that maybe you'd do me a favor and let me store it in your room." Vala gave Peter her version of the evil eye, which made him laugh. "Okay. I surrender. It's a bed." She looked questioningly at him. "It's a larger bed than you have now. If you're going to have sleepovers I thought your room should be spruced up a little bit. I just happen to have a brass bed that needs a home."

Vala jumped up and ran around the table to where Peter was sitting. She came up behind him and threw her arms around his neck, whispered her thanks and then asked loudly. "So, when do I get it?"

"Maybe, just maybe, it will show up some time today. It depends on my work load. We can't just drop everything and move you up to the highest priority now can we?" He laughed at her pout.

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Vala left the Commissary waving to her friends and headed back to her room. She was nervous, not sure if she hoped Daniel was still there or gone. Vala slowly opened the door and peeked into the room. Daniel was sitting at the desk writing in a notebook. He looked up and saw her face peering around the door. "There you are! I was wondering what happened to you. Did you get enough to eat?" He took her into his arms and kissed her whispering "I missed you." He picked her up, kicked the door closed with his foot, walked over to the bed and dumped Vala onto the bed. He sat down next to her and leaned back against the head board. Vala pulled herself up and snuggled into his arms.

"It's a little after five, when did we say we'd meet the rest of the team, Vala?" Daniel had started to kiss Vala's neck along the collar of her tee shirt as he checked his watch. Vala rolled away from him until she was flat on her back. She encouraged Daniel as he removed her clothes by moving the appropriate body parts. Vala sat up putting her arms straight up in the air so he could easily pull her shirt up over her head. Once her shirt was off she lay back down but kept her arms above her head with her fingers locked behind her head, having decided that she wasn't going to help Daniel any further. She giggled as he started kissing her stomach.

"Sorry, Daniel, I'm not wearing the most romantic nightwear. This isn't one of Victoria's Secret's finest outfits." Daniel looked up from where he had been tugging at the waistband of her sweat pants with his teeth.

"You have got to be kidding, Vala. I don't care what you're wearing. In fact the quicker I can get it off of you the more romantic it'll be." He continued to work towards his objective and then stopped in mid kiss. "Victoria's Secret! It's your Air Force issue black tee shirt and …" He reached underneath her, pulled the waistband of her pants out and to the side until he could read the tag. "…the pants are from the Boy's Collection at Sears."

Vala hadn't answered his question about when they were meeting SG-1 for breakfast but Daniel no longer had any interest in the answer.

At seven there was a soft knock on the door. Daniel was in a deep sleep but Vala had already started to wake up. She quietly slipped out of bed being very careful not to disturb Daniel. Vala had decided that she was looking forward to her new bed, it was nice sleeping close to Daniel, but a single bed was a little narrow. And not just for sleeping, at various times one of the other of them had ended up on the floor, not as part of an act of passion, but the act of literally running out of space in the bed. She grabbed her tee shirt off the floor and pulled it over her head. Once at the door she opened it barely an inch and the person on the other side whispered to her. "You wanted to make sure you were up at seven, dear. I'm going off-duty now. Catch ya later, baby."

"Thanks Peter." Vala quietly slipped into the bathroom and turned on the shower. Relaxed under the warm water she thought about the upcoming meeting with Thomas. Vala tried to be logical and reasonable trying to come up with a pro and con list, but she felt guilty thinking about any sort of con list. Abject guilt was a very familiar if not almost comfortable state for her. The idea of being able to help those children inspired her and made it difficult to even consider telling Thomas that she wanted to back out, quit, disappoint him, and not keep her promises. Actions that she detested in others and most of all in herself. She had wasted too much of her life being a coward and had resolved to be a better person. She uneasily pushed aside the little voice in her head that had started out whispering but was now yelling "What about Daniel!"

Daniel was still in bed but awake when Vala came out of the bathroom fully dressed except for her boots. "Good morning, darling Daniel."

"Who was the alarm clock?"

"You mean Peter? Just a friend. I asked him to check that I was up by seven. He leaves for home at seven so it's not a problem for him to swing by my room as he goes off-duty." Vala was sitting on the floor tying the laces of her boots. "Are you going to get dressed? Aren't you hungry?"

Daniel had already gone into the bathroom taking along the clean clothes he had stuck in his briefcase last night. Walking out of the bathroom he headed to the door. "I forgot my razor. I'm going to go back to my room to shave. Want to come with?"

In seconds Vala was right behind him pushing him out the door. "Let's go." Closing her door behind them she took Daniel's hand in hers then quickly dropped it. He reached down recapturing it, brought her hand up to his lips and kissed her knuckles.

Vala sat cross legged on top of Daniel's desk as he shaved in his bathroom with the door open. Opening a drawer and pulling out a pen Vala yelled over the running water. "Daniel, I think that I should write a list of the reasons I should and the reasons I shouldn't finish Thomas's project. Do you have some paper I can use?"

"There should be a legal pad in the center drawer." He heard her open the drawer and added. "It's made of yellow lined paper."

"Got it! Thanks."

After he finished shaving Daniel started to brush his teeth, he had forgotten all of his toiletries last night. He laughed to himself realizing that he hadn't forgotten any of his work, telling himself that maybe Vala should have thought through being with him a little more carefully. He walked out of the bathroom to share that thought, admitting to himself that he really just wanted to hear her protest that she knew what she was getting into and had no regrets. Hopefully she would then try and convince him with at least a hug. Daniel couldn't imagine a better way to start his day, especially when breakfast with Thomas was looming on the horizon. Vala was sitting on his desk with a legal pad on her lap and a pen between her teeth. She looked up at Daniel and smiled, though with the pen in her mouth it looked more than a little strange. To Daniel it looked adorable and he kissed her at an angle in order to avoid the pen. "Darling, you ready?" Taking the pen out of her mouth Vala jumped down and linked her arm with Daniel's.

"How far did you get on your list?" He tried to read what she'd written but she angled the pad so he couldn't see, except that the whole page was covered with writing. Daniel continued to be amazed with Vala's linguistic ability, she had learned to read and write English in only a few months. It was frightening in a way; he had seen her looking at an Ancient Greek textbook last week and fully expected her to be fluent the next time he needed help translating. Vala insisted that it was like mathematics you just needed to work out the underlying code, adding that you also had to hear a language in your heart. One of his professors had insisted that languages were music, there was structure but it was the art that brought life to both music and language. He thought that Vala and Dr. Miller would like each other. Maybe he would take her to meet him, certainly if she could get permission to go to Washington with Thomas; SGC would allow her to go with him to visit an old friend.

The rest of SG-1 was already sitting at a table and Rayna was with them sitting next to Teal'c. They were at a large table with enough room for Thomas and Jason to join them. Daniel looked at Mitchell to see if he was going to make a crack about him and Vala. They had entered the room arm in arm and both said good morning. Teal'c nodded; Rayna and Sam smiled and responded with their own good mornings. Daniel sat and proceeded to stare at Mitchell daring him to tease them. However, Mitchell just smiled and gestured towards Rayna and Teal'c by nodding his head to the left and rolling his eyes. Daniel sighed happily; they were obviously yesterday's news. Daniel tried to feel sorry for Teal'c but he was too relieved to have any sympathy for Mitchell's new target.

Vala was still standing and smiling broadly at her friends. She wasn't smirking or leering, she didn't look as if she was going to blurt out an embarrassing secret, she simply looked happy. "Can I get anyone anything to eat or drink? I'm starving." She was scanning the room for any of her other friends, not seeing anyone she headed towards the line. Daniel had started to answer her but she cut him off. "Yes, darling. Coffee."

Mitchell wasn't quite ready to let Daniel alone. "You should try the eggs this morning Daniel. Pirate Gold egg bake, named for a certain interstellar adventuress we all know and love." In his usual style he had put air quotes around the words "all" and "love" grinning as he did so.

It wasn't very long until Vala returned to the table with a tray pilled high with dishes. She took a cup of coffee and put it down in front of Daniel. Rayna looked intently at all the food while Vala started eating. Looking around the table Rayna noticed that no one else was reacting. Teal'c took pity on her and explained. "Vala Mal Duran has a high metabolic rate and requires frequent and large amounts of sustenance."

Mitchell added. "Especially after strenuous exercise." He had been unable to resist one crack. Vala grinned widely and leaned towards Daniel whispering in his ear. He turned and placed a chaste kiss on her lips, looked Mitchell in the eye and said. "You betcha."

Sam choked on her orange juice trying to keep from laughing. Teal'c gave Daniel a slight, almost unperceivable, smile. And Mitchell's loud laugh caused heads to turn towards their table. Vala waved at everyone who looked over, though not her closest friends, she knew almost all of them.

Vala ate and the others discussed Rayna's experiences so far at SGC. Was her room comfortable? Was the food acceptable? Was Teal'c answering all of her questions? Having slowed down Vala pulled her legal pad out from under her tray. Daniel stood up and took the plate of muffins and fruit off her tray and onto the table, returning her tray and empty dishes. When he came back to the table he carried a second cup of coffee, a small glass of juice and a plate of Pirate Gold eggs.

Vala started. "Thomas and Jason should be here soon. I thought I would tell you what's involved in our project." She shoved the plate to one side after taking an apple in her left hand.

Rayna broke in. "Do you wish me to leave?"

Vala shook her head no. "Mya explained it to you and your skills as an empath might help me get my thoughts straight. Unless it will be too difficult for you? I may get a little emotional."

"I will be fine. I continue to get better at blocking your strongest feelings and I'll be able to adjust my reactions, letting in more or less depending on the need. I appreciate your willingness to let me observe." Rayna decided that it was not yet time to tell them about Mya's charge to Rayna. She had promised to investigate this Thomas and his plans with the ultimate goal being Vala's protection.

Between bites of apple Vala repeated what she had told them before. Thomas tried to help her understand the existence on Earth of such horrible situations as children soldiers and human trafficking for the sex trade. Together they explored the psychology and the political realities involved, that made it worse than simply good versus evil. Vala became obsessed with helping. The victim's pain spoke to her in a special way, she identified strongly with people who were forced to commit horrific acts against their will, drugged and brainwashed, losing all control over their lives and persons. "I was so sure that I could help, that my experiences were so similar, that my unique understanding of what they had suffered would allow me to help and give my life's pain some meaning and worth. But that wasn't to happen." No one said a word, Daniel always felt better when he could have as much body contact with Vala as possible. The easiest way was to reach over and slide onto his lap, wrap his arms around her and pull her tight against his chest. Vala smiled and squished up against him as closely as she could. Feeling safe and loved it was easier for her to continue.

She continued her explanation, speaking about Thomas's expected outcome of the project, finding a way for counselors and therapists to better understand the type of trauma the victims had suffered. How they were so excited about the idea of a virtual reality simulation, one based on Vala's experiences enhanced by the use of a modified version of the alien memory device used on both Mitchell and Vala. That a selection of her memories could be manipulated and downloaded to the device and used to create a program that would allow the user to feel as if they were reliving a victim's actual experiences.

Vala looked in the eyes of each person at the table trying to make sure that they understood what the project could mean, how she could be a part of something worthwhile, something that could help others who had suffered as she had, how much that would mean to her. She felt that they understood and relaxed.

Sam asked. "That is certainly admirable Vala and I can't stress how much I admire you. But as I remember there was a bit of a downside to your involvement."

"I don't think the Galaran memory device should be touched, modified, reprogrammed or anything. It should have been destroyed and I should have insisted on it. It's my fault that Dr. Lee had anything to work with. If I hadn't insisted on using it again for my own personal gain, no matter how good my intentions might have been, it would have been locked away and never used on anyone again." Mitchell was almost pleading with them to understand his objections. He was clearly distraught and his intensity was frightening. "Hell, I didn't want to let them use it on you Vala, even if it was your idea. If for any of a million possible reasons our plan had failed you would have lived with those memories for the rest of your life. And I would have had to live knowing that I was responsible. It was a sin of omission, I didn't stop it. And that was just wrong." Mitchell had pounded his fist on the table when he said the word wrong.

Everyone was taken aback by his passionate distaste for any use of memory manipulation. He had to be considered the expert on the device. Though Vala had remembered being mistrusted and betrayed it couldn't be compared to Mitchell's memories of killing a woman. Rayna looked as if she was in shock, her breathing was shallow, her face pale and if you looked closely there was a tremor in her hands. The mood was tense and no one said a word.

Sam broke the silence. "I'm going to talk to Dr. Lee." She stood up saying. "Vala, you don't have the technical knowledge to answer my questions. I can't even begin to form an opinion until I know what's involved. But I don't like the sound of it at all, not one bit." As she left she turned to Daniel. "Please, Daniel. Whatever you do, don't let her agree to anything until I get back." She looked at Teal'c with the same request in her eyes. Sam left the table as he nodded in understanding.

Mitchell had stood up at the same time as Sam. "I hope that I've made myself clear. I don't care who you can save, it's not worth taking the chance. That might make me a bad person, but so be it." He walked out the door after Sam.

Vala looked a little nervous but started to talk to Teal'c, Rayna and Daniel. She was glad that she couldn't see Daniel's face as she spoke. "I think Mitchell is a little too close to the situation. I think he can't be objective." She tried to lighten the mood by putting air quotes around the word objective. Wanted to avoid hearing from Daniel and Teal'c she asked. "Rayna, what do you think so far?"

"I think that your need to atone for what you consider your crimes can't be overlooked. There's no way that it can be ignored, redemption is a very strong motivation and should not be discounted." Rayna didn't mention the difference between perceived guilt and deserved guilt; she would save that for a later discussion.

Daniel had planned on listening quietly to Vala's list, pretend to consider her arguments, and then refuse to even consider her involvement as an option. Sam and Mitchell had strengthened his resolve but Rayna's contribution had startled him. He started second guessing his previous conviction, could he deny Vala an avenue to assuage her guilt. Especially one that had the potential to accomplish some good in the world. Daniel had been so sure that he was right; he wasn't sure what to think. He made a decision. "I think that we have to wait for Sam to return, we need more detailed information, scientific information if Vala is going to make a rational decision. Pleased that he had been able to postpone any further discussion for the moment, Daniel relaxed. Whether it made any sense or not part of his relaxing involved hugging Vala even closer. It made it hard for her to breathe but it felt so good that Vala didn't say a word in protest and after a few seconds she was able to breathe again.

Teal'c hadn't said a word the whole time. Vala and Daniel looked at him in anticipation when Rayna stood up saying. "Thomas and Jason are here." She waved at them. "Please, come join us. We are having a most enlightening conversation." At her words Teal'c looked up at Rayna and raised his eyebrow, as if trying to figure out what she was doing. Even an Alien would be unlikely to describe their discussion as an enlightening conversation; he decided to reserve judgment for the moment.


	28. Chapter 28

Jason and Thomas entered the Commissary and saw Rayna waving at them. Thomas walked to the table and sat down while Jason went to get coffee for them both. A smiling Thomas said good morning to Teal'c, Rayna, Daniel and Vala. Both Rayna and Vala smiled and said good morning in reply. Teal'c stared intently at Thomas making him feel very nervous while Daniel simply nodded with no expression on his face. When Jason came over with their coffee Vala stood up and hugged Jason then went over to Thomas and kissed him on the cheek.

"Welcome back, Vala dear. Did you have a good trip? Dr. Jackson very kindly sent us copies of the mission report which we found fascinating." Thomas smiled at Vala and Rayna but avoided looking at Teal'c or Daniel. "Rayna, I would really like to talk to you about your planet and your people. I hope that'd be okay with you."

"Dr. Graham, nothing would please me more. Perhaps after breakfast I could visit with you. I promise to do my best to answer all of your questions. I am assuming that Daniel will be including you in the group; I think General Landry called it a taskforce, which is being created to make recommendation as to the best way to accomplish the goals of all parties. Those of SGC, my people and my own personal goals." Rayna waited patiently for his answer, she was anxious to get a chance to spend some time with this Dr. Graham, time enough to complete her evaluation.

Jason answered immediately. "That sounds great, doesn't it Thomas? I don't see any problem."

Thomas looked a little put out that Jason had answered without consulting him. But he realized that Jason thought they were going to have a simple meeting with SG-1to finalize arrangements for Vala's trip with them. Jason was unaware that they might run into some resistance from SG-1, especially Daniel. For the moment Thomas was unaware that Mitchell would turn out to be the biggest obstacle to his plan. The intensity of Mitchell's hatred and loathing of the Galaran device had surprised SG-1 and would soon be turned on Thomas.

After kissing Thomas Vala hadn't returned to sit on Daniel's lap. Instead she sat next to Thomas which put her as far away from Daniel as possible. Daniel didn't react to her change of seating. Vala pretended that Daniel wasn't even at the table and focused on the apple in her hand; then surprised herself and everyone at the table, by putting it down unfinished. Earlier in her chosen career of pursued and abused ex-host Vala had learned that wasting food, if not what they called on Earth a "sin", was counterproductive to basic survival. Vala held her breath waiting for Thomas to bring up the subject of their project, luckily before she was forced to take a breath he started to speak.

"I'm glad to see Vala surrounded by her friends. Vala, maybe we should finalize our plans for Washington. I know that Jason is anxious to arrange all the details."

Teal'c spoke with his usual gravitas. "Samantha Carter will be returning shortly from her meeting with Dr. Lee. Perhaps we could delay this discussion for a few minutes."

Thomas looked uneasy. Jason was excited. "I didn't realize that Sam was interested in our project. Dr. Lee has the greatest respect for her scientific knowledge and ability and I'm sure he'll more than welcome her input."

"Indeed."

Thomas answered Teal'c's monosyllable. "Why don't we start without her? You know how scientists can be when they get together and work on a project. Any improvements she may offer can be incorporated without our ideas."

Teal'c and Daniel didn't look convinced. Vala was now staring at her hands which she'd placed flat on the table side by side with her palms down. Her uncharacteristic stillness caught Jason's attention and he was confused by her behavior. He didn't understand what was going on beneath the surface of this meeting. Jason had expected to give SG-1 a brief overview of the project as a courtesy to Vala's team and then quickly move on to the final arrangements for their trip. Thomas seemed nervous to Jason but he couldn't read Teal'c or Daniel. He was used to being confounded by Teal'c; however Daniel was usually more easily read. When they first entered the room Vala was sitting on Daniel's lap as if it was the most natural thing in the world. That in itself wasn't an unusual situation. But this time Daniel had looked as if it was the most natural thing in the world, too. He not only looked comfortable with their intimate position but Jason saw Daniel pull her in even closer to his body when he caught sight of Thomas. Jason enjoyed seeing Daniel act protective of Vala, but it was disturbing that it seemed Daniel was protecting her from him and Thomas.

Feeling awkward Jason said the first thing that came to mind. "What about Mitchell? I thought that as Vala's titular commanding officer he would want to be involved."

Daniel spoke for the first time. "Trust me. He certainly wants to be involved, though you may end up regretting it." Daniel looked Jason directly in the eye but continued to show no emotion. He turned and looked at Vala with a look that could only be described as devotion. As if she felt his eyes on her Vala raised her head and returned Daniel's gaze with the same intensity of feeling. Regardless of what was brewing below the surface of this meeting, Jason was ecstatic. His dear Vala was in love and happy and, even better, the object of her love was equally enthralled. Jason admired Vala's insight into people; it had convinced him to accept her judgment of Daniel's character. Vala loved Daniel and so Jason had to believe that Daniel deserved that love.

Vala was overwhelmed with guilt, convinced that she was a horrible person and didn't deserve to be happy. When she saw how Daniel was looking at her, all she could think of was him. She said to herself "screw this"; she wanted to tell Thomas to shove the whole project. Most of all Vala wanted to stop thinking entirely, race back to her room and find the promised brass bed waiting.

Then she looked at Jason and saw how happy he was for her. She couldn't stop from thinking about his patients. Vala wanted to help all of them; they deserved to be happy, as much if not more than her. Vala was convinced that they were owed a chance at happiness, a chance that was never before given to her. Daniel was watching her and saw renewed determination mirrored in her face. He tried to convince himself that he was wrong, but he knew better. Vala was once again ready to throw herself wholeheartedly into the project. Daniel didn't think that he could stop her and then thought that maybe he shouldn't stop her. Daniel had spent most of his life on an emotional roller coaster but he didn't remember ever feeling so conflicted. Daniel wanted to rest his head on the table and cover it with his arms, to block out everything, to simply stop thinking. He couldn't believe he was surprised that he had found happiness again and now it was going to be taken away from him, that all he would be left with were the memories of the past few days with Vala. She had developed a fondness for Earth aphorisms sharing one with him just last week. "Life sucks and then you die." Vala had been charmed by it, telling him that she found it comforting. Daniel asked her if she was a fatalist. After checking the dictionary she told him no, she was a realist. She didn't believe in destiny just in the odds. Now her phrase was all he could hear in his mind.

Jason had no idea what Daniel was implying about Mitchell. He did know that it was time someone explained to him what the hell was going on. He looked to Rayna hoping to find a voice of reason. "I don't think that we're all on the same page. I feel like I missed a couple of classes and I'm facing an exam covering material I never saw before." Thomas loved that Jason went right to an academic reference; he loved him for a number of reasons. Thomas was afraid that Jason would be pretty angry with him pretty soon and his love for Jason might not save him from his wrath.

Jason was pleased to hear Rayna speak. "I am the outsider here but my people have learned that it can sometimes be helpful to filter conflict through a neutral person."

Daniel answered. "Our people believe that, too."

"Indeed, as do the Jaffa."

"If it is agreed to by all," Rayna looked at each person one by one. After they all nodded she continued. "I will try to explain my understanding of the situation. Please feel free to interrupt me if you think I am mistaken. Let me apologize in advance for my lack of understanding of the technology but I hope that in spite of my shortcomings I will be able to convey the essence of the plan." They were all listening carefully to every word Rayna said and no one noticed that Sam had come back with Bill Lee in tow.

Sam had obviously been there long enough to have heard most of what Rayna had said. "I think that Bill and I can speak to any technology questions or concerns." Sam was smiling politely but Bill Lee looked dejected and unwilling to catch Thomas's eye. "Please continue Rayna. I think it is an excellent idea that we all start from the same place."

Sg-1 had taken a large table in the corner furthest from the serving area. There were no tables close to theirs and other SGC staff had avoided the area in order to give them space. Mitchell's outburst had been noticed when he pounded his fist on the table, but people weren't close enough to understand his words. However, even with Mitchell gone, the group had gotten larger with the addition of Thomas, Jason and Dr. Lee.

Thomas suggested they adjourn to the conference room next to his office. Daniel instructed the airmen behind the counter to let Mitchell know where they had gone. He expected Mitchell to return once he calmed down. He had never seen Cam so distressed.

VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV

The room was a duplicate of the briefing room. Thomas sat at the head of the table with Jason and Vala to his right and left. Teal'c sat next to Vala and Daniel next to Jason. Rayna sat at the other end of the table across from Thomas. Dr. Lee looked at the empty chairs obviously uncertain where he should sit. His choices were next to Daniel or Teal'c, while Teal'c intimidated him he expected Daniel to blame him for his role in the project. Sam slid into the chair next to Daniel leaving Bill no option but to sit by Teal'c.

Rayna did an excellent job with her concise summary of the project. She'd explained in detail Vala's desire to help, her guilt at being unable to help one on one with the children, and her delight at the prospect of helping in another manner. She talked about the hoped for outcome of the project, the excitement generated by the very real possibility of a device that used in conjunction with Vala's unique memories would provide a visceral simulation of the trauma undergone by the victims, and therefore a unique perspective to therapists. Rayna's account gave credit to both Thomas and Vala for their dedication and caring. She conveyed her admiration for everyone involved, Vala, Jason, Bill and most of all Thomas who was responsible for developing the concept. Rayna obviously considered this responsibility to be an amazing achievement. When Rayna mentioned the technological aspects of the plan, the Galaran memory device and its modifications, the virtual reality environment that would be created, etc. she made no attempt to explain the details. Rayna had looked to Sam who assured her that details could be explained by her or Dr. Lee, and that she hadn't misrepresented the science behind the project. Her listeners felt that Rayna was holding back something but it was easy to dismiss at least for the moment.

Mitchell had entered without a sound and stood leaning against the wall behind Teal'c. Once Rayna finished he quietly added. "Now comes the down side. I think we all appreciate how much Vala wants to help. Damn it, we all want to help." Mitchell's voice had started out quiet and controlled, but when he swore his voice had gotten louder. He tried to keep his face void of expression but you could feel the cold anger in his voice. "And it sounds as if Vala has an actual chance at it. However, Vala, you and Thomas have to be honest about the possible side effects. Dr. Lee you're the expert here we're gonna need an honest appraisal from you. Don't worry we have Sam here to help us with the techno babble. We might all love the idea of this project but I am not willing to lose one of my team in order to test your prototype. Leaving a member of SG-1 a vegetable would be much worse than leaving them behind on a mission. We do not leave people behind, and I will not leave Vala."

SG-1 displayed no outward reactions. Vala was pleased by his concern but unsure of how she felt about his conclusions regarding her involvement.

Daniel was selfishly thrilled to have Mitchell be the one fighting to save Vala. Mitchell didn't second guess his emotions or opinion; he wasn't torn by wanting Vala to have an opportunity to assuage her guilt without losing her. Daniel had searched for years to find ways to make up for his failure to save Sha're and understood Vala's desire for redemption.

Teal'c had decided that Rayna might just hold the key to their dilemma, he wasn't sure why. He was convinced that she'd been subtly guiding their discussions from the beginning.

Sam had noticed the horror and disbelief on Jason's face when Mitchell mentioned leaving one of his people a vegetable and thought that the next few minutes would prove interesting.

Bill Lee looked uncomfortable and even ashamed. Talking to Sam about the use of technology and the issue of acceptable risks was one thing, but when Mitchell personalized it by talking about Vala it was another thing entirely. He liked Vala. She made him laugh and when he wandered out of his lab seeking food in the middle of the night she'd welcome him into her group. He noticed that she attempted to included anyone who entered the Commissary; there were no cliques when Vala was there. She was too familiar with being shunned to put up with a separate area for the "cool kids" whether or not this time she would have been the shunner. Consequently Bill had ended up talking with a much wider group of people than any other time in his life, and finding friends. He had joined a group of role playing game enthusiasts who held a floating game that met on Sunday mornings at a variety of locations off-base. Spouses, families, significant others, etc. were reluctant to play host more than once or twice a year. Saturday afternoons the text messages would fly sending directions to the next day's location. Bill's daughter started to call it Dad's Rave. The group included cleaners, doctors, security guards and their newest member a psychiatrist that was where Bill had met Thomas. He found it humbling that he'd calculated the chances of unforeseen adverse consequences to the subject and been able to ignore the fact that the "subject" was a person, in fact someone to whom he felt a personal connection.

Jason was in shock. He looked around for the closest waste basket knowing he was going to throw up any second. He saw one out of the corner of his eye along the wall behind him. The chairs were on wheels so he pushed himself over to the wall, grabbed the can and wheeled back to the table.


	29. Chapter 29

Rayna spoke first. "Jason, my dear, please try to calm yourself. I fear you have received a shock today and your body is trying to process all of the intense emotions caused by that shock. I think …"

Sam interrupted. "Rayna, are you okay? As an empath this must be a very difficult situation for you to endure."

Dr. Lee looked questioningly at Sam and quietly said. "Empath?"

Sam had been watching Rayna closely since they had arrived in Thomas's conference room. When Sam first saw Rayna her blond braids and innocent looking face made her feel protective. Starting on her planet a few minutes after Sam first met her she stopped noticing her appearance as she listened to her speak. Rayna was not condescending; she obviously cared about people and simply wanted to help. As she, in her own way, analyzed the people at the table though she looked barely sixteen Rayna spoke with an authority and wisdom beyond her years. Everyone around the table listened intently, seeming to find personal insight in her words.

"Sam, thank you for your concern. It may seem strange, but I'm all right. I'm now able to handle Vala's emotions; in fact, since she is no longer distraught I don't have to block her. She knows that she will be supported by those she loves, regardless of her decision." Rayna turned to look directly at Vala. "I can only hope that you appreciate how much "your Daniel" loves you, how much all of your friends love you."

Vala exchanged glances with Daniel and they both smiled gently.

Rayna continued looking directly at each individual as she spoke. "Colonel Mitchell is passionate, but in no way conflicted. Some one, whose emotions are clear and straightforward, no matter how strong, doesn't bother me. There is no doubt, no second guessing in his mind. That can actually be a comfort to someone like me. And Daniel is even more of a comfort, he loves Vala, he knows that she loves him and that love drives all of his thoughts and emotions. Nor do I have problems with the deep felt concern of both Teal'c and Sam."

"However, Dr. Lee, Thomas and Jason are more problematic." Rayna turned first towards Dr. Lee. "Though the guilt you feel may be painful, it is deserved." Dr. Lee was taken aback, he wasn't sure what he had expected this "empath" to say to him, but it wasn't this. "You were willing to approve the possible sacrifice of another person's mind as long as you could think of them not as an individual, but simply a "test subject". Once you realized that someone you knew and liked, Vala in fact, was the "test subject" you had second thoughts about the dangers involved. However much pain I feel from you, it is acceptable to me. You have learned and will continue to learn from your mistake and in the future you will be a better scientist and a better man."

Dr. Lee looked shocked and they could see that Rayna had been correct about his feelings and thoughts, her abilities frightened him. As he considered her words he couldn't help but think about how she could help him with his project. He was frustrated when he realized that he wouldn't be able to talk to her until she finished speaking to each person. As he continued these thoughts he felt drawn to look at Rayna. He was embarrassed to see that she had guessed where his thoughts had traveled. He looked apologetic then grateful when she smiled saying. "Bill, it is fine. I will be happy to work with you." He gave her a relieved smile and continued to plan all the questions he wanted to ask.

Looking towards Daniel and Vala, Rayna smiled and said almost as an aside. "In contrast, people who feel guilt when it isn't warranted or deserved, cause an empath deep pain. But we can discuss that later." Rayna had to laugh at Daniel's and Vala's guilty looks. Everyone at the table smiled or laughed at her words. Bill gave them an almost superior look as if to say that at least he was legitimately guilty and therefore some how "better" than them.

"Thomas, you have misled Jason. Your motives may have been worthwhile but you knew that was no excuse. To hide the problems you and Dr. Lee encountered was an insult to Jason, he is not a child and you have no right to try and spare him pain." Both Thomas and Jason had stricken looks on their faces, and Thomas looked terrified. He was avoiding eye contact with Jason and kept focused on Rayna's face as she continued. "I will need to speak to you alone and then with Jason and Bill. Once I have a clearer understanding of all that is involved I hope to be able to assist you in achieving the goals of your project without causing harm to anyone."

Before she could continue Mitchell broke in. "I know that I don't understand all the science and the psychological crap, but how could forcing your therapists to experience Vala's life not damage them. Let me tell you that having those types of memories inserted into your mind, even once you know they are false, is not something you want to live through. I'm not sure that I can ever adequately convey the pain to anyone else and I still have nightmares." Turning towards Vala he added. "And I expect that you do too, princess. You may pretend to laugh off your memories of SG-1's betrayal, but I know better. I see it in your eyes when you have one of those crazy déjà vu moments. Trust me, I'm intimately acquainted with those moments." Mitchell smiled with his mouth but his eyes were cold as he stared at Thomas.

Vala stared straight at Mitchell refusing to look at any other member of SG-1. She knew that Daniel would have a devastated look on his face. Daniel leaned across the table to touch her and Vala had to look at him when she felt his hand on hers. She saw that he wasn't looking guilty but was smiling at her. "We need to spread the guilt around, darling. It was your idea so I'll let you carry the guilt for that little episode."

Everyone laughed in surprise at Daniel's words and the mood suddenly lightened. All of Vala's good intentions to maintain a "professional" demeanor disappeared. She stood up pushing her chair back with so much force that it fell over. Ignoring the chair she ran around the table to Daniel, grabbed his chair and swung it around to face her. Taking his face between her hands she gave him a quick kiss. Before Vala could move back Daniel pulled her down onto his lap and turned his chair back to the table. He draped his left arm over her shoulder holding her just close enough to keep her from slipping off. Vala folded her hands in her lap and they looked at Rayna to continue. There was no squirming, no stolen kisses, no holding of hands, Vala simply sat quietly on Daniel's lap.

Jason spoke to Mitchell. "Colonel I think that I can speak to your concerns." He turned to look at Thomas. "I can, can't I? You and Bill haven't been hiding anything else from me?" Bill stared blankly at Jason. "I'm sorry Bill. I know that you didn't hide anything from me. There was no reason for you to expect Thomas not to pass along all your data, findings, best guess scenarios, etc."

"They won't "experience" Vala's life; her memories won't be inserted into their minds. It will be a type of "virtual reality" simulation, they will be personally removed from the actual events, but the ability to inhabit the mind and body of Vala even at a distance provides amazing insight. When they begin to feel overwhelmed there is a kind of shut-off switch easily available. I've been told that it is similar to a video game, an incredibly intense game with extraordinary visual effects. Perhaps you could think of it as similar to a flight simulation program, I'm sure that you've used them."

Mitchell obviously gave it some thought before he said. "Sorry. I'm too close to the subject. When I even think of thinking about the Galaran memory device I lose all my higher brain functions." He turned to the rest of SG-1 and growled glaring at them. "Don't even think about saying it." Then he smiled broadly at his team and they smiled back.

Rayna stood up saying. "I find that this type of emotional meeting is exhausting, both physically and mentally. People cease to think logically and answer without adequate consideration and thought. Nothing of value is achieved."

Vala spoke up first. "I, for one, am starving. I have joined Cam as one of the brainless."

Teal'c said. "Are you now a zombie, Vala Mal Duran?" SG-1 started at him waiting to see if he would smile. His attempt to appear guileless failed and a smile added to his infamous eyebrow lift made them all laugh. Except for poor, Vala who was immensely confused. Vala could tell that Teal'c had made one of his rare jokes but wasn't sure if it was at her expense, so she laughed along with the team. Sam took pity on her and said. "I'll explain it to you later; it's a horror movie joke."

Vala gave Sam a grateful smile before saying. "Hey guys. Starving here!"

Rayna said. "Vala is right. We need to eat and perhaps rest for awhile. My body has not yet adjusted completely to your planet."

Mitchell had promised her people that he would take care of Rayna and felt that he was failing in his obligation. "I feel just terrible, Rayna. I have been thoughtless. Would you like to go to your room before we eat?" He had moved towards her chair as he spoke but Teal'c had reached her first and helped her up out of her chair. Teal'c had taken her arm in his and was escorting her out of the door.

"Rayna, where would you prefer that I take you?"

Rayna smiled brightly up at Teal'c. "I would like to retire to my room before we eat. Perhaps once in my room Vala and Sam would be kind enough to join me for a few minutes." She looked at the two women who nodded their agreement.

Teal'c headed out of the room with Rayna on his arm. "Indeed. I'm sure that they would be most happy to help you."

Rayna looked back into the conference room saying. "All of us will meet and share a meal, perhaps in an hour?"

Vala was curious about Rayna's request for her and Sam to stay. She was pleased to see that Sam appeared to be just as intrigued. Teal'c left them outside of Rayna's room after opening the door for the three women to enter. Sam sat at the desk chair and Vala jumped up on the bed. They both stared at Rayna eagerly anticipating what she would say.

"I'm a little embarrassed, and I hope that you will forgive my boldness." They both assured her that there was no reason for her to be worried about what they thought.

Sam almost fell off the chair when Rayna said. "I think that my clothes look a little odd here. Is there anyway you could help me? On my planet some of the older women create all of the clothing, we have choices of colors and fabrics, but I have noticed that there is a very wide variety of clothing worn by the women I've seen."

Vala squealed, jumping up immediately as soon as she heard "clothes". "Shopping, we have to go shopping! The Tau'ri have the most amazing shops, Rayna. We will have so much fun! Daniel will be happy to give us his credit card."

Sam interrupted. "I don't think we have the time for a visit to the Mall right now. Plus Rayna will need to be given permission to leave the base."

"Rose!" Vala got up off the bed and grabbed Rayna by the hand.

Sam looked questioningly at Vala? "Rose?"

"My friend Rose, in the Laundry. She and her team design and sew all of our undercover clothes. They will be so excited to help Rayna. Come on. Now! Let's go."

As Sam opened the door Rayna asked in a very quiet voice. "Is your team mate Teal'c married or betrothed?"

Sam looked at her in astonishment and Vala laughed and hugging herself tightly replied quickly. "No. Free as a bird. And quite a catch let me tell you!"

As the women walked down the hall arm in arm Sam asked. "Have you thought about your hair?"

Rayna looked surprised. "My hair?"

Vala said. "The braids are going. I don't care what the latest Jaffa hair style is; we are not staying with the whole "Sound of Music" motif here, guys. Don't worry Rayna; we'll take care of you, trust us. Right, Sam?"


	30. Chapter 30

_**The following chapter is beyond fluff. If you are put off by matters of clothing, hair and shoes please skip to the last few paragraphs at the end and wait for the next chapter. I just returned from a vacation and my mind won't let me write anything that isn't silly. Sorry!**_

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Rayna, Vala and Sam walked into the Laundry. Vala grabbed Rayna's hand and dragged her towards Rose's office. Rose had looked up from her desk when she heard Vala yelling her name. "Rose! Rose! Come on out here. You won't believe what I brought you! This is Rayna, she …"

Sam quickly interrupted Vala saying. "Rayna is a person Vala. Not a what."

Vala laughed. "Rayna knows what I mean. Don't you dear?" Before Rayna could reply Vala answered her own question. "Of course you do. You can feel exactly how I feel."

Rose walked out of her office and put her hands on Vala's shoulders looking directly into her eyes. "Vala, what the hell is going on? Calm down."

"There is no time to be calm Rose. We have to move fast, you have to move fast. We have less than an hour." Vala was smiling like a maniac and jumping up and down in her excitement.

"An hour until what?"

Rayna stepped between Rose and Vala, smiled and held her hand out to shake Rose's hand. "Greetings, Rose. My name is Rayna and Vala and Sam have agreed to assist me." When Rayna said Sam's name Rose looked over at Sam, smiled and nodded a greeting.

Rayna continued. "As you can tell by my appearance I come from a very plain and simple culture. On my planet everyone wears very similar clothing and I have been intrigued by all of the variety I've seen here. Vala assures me that this is nothing compared to the world outside of the mountain."

Vala broke into their conversation speaking in a rush with her thoughts running together in one long crazy run on sentence. "She wants a makeover we're meeting with a bunch of people for dinner in less than an hour at the very least we need to change her hair get rid of the peasant girl outfit though nothing too racy to start and by the way she's interested in Teal'c isn't that great…"

When Rose heard Vala say makeover her mind took off. There was nothing more challenging than a makeover, finding ways to enhance a person's appearance without forcing your ideas on them, helping them make choices they are comfortable with, helping the person discover what they want and how they can achieve the best results. Rose knew that Vala wanted to play Barbie Doll with Rayna, but it was part of Rose's job to prevent that from happening.

Rose looked intently into Rayna's eyes and just as she started to speak Vala said. "By the way, she's an empath."

Rose thought about it and decided that it could only improve the whole process. If Rayna trusted what Rose said, for whatever reason, that would be great. Rose would be able to spend less time reassuring Rayna and more time working together."

"Well Rayna we might as well start. Obviously we only have time for a few superficial changes. Hair is an easy start; minor changes make huge differences in how we are perceived. What did you have in mind?"

Vala said. "Get rid of the braids, anything would be an improvement. Go ahead and cut."

Rose turned to Vala. "Vala, Sam is so right. Rayna is not a toy for you to play with. I know that you mean well, and I'm sure that Rayna appreciates your enthusiasm. But you brought her to me because you trust me, right?"

Vala nodded and smiled apologetically at Rayna, who smiled and nodded back. "Of course you're right. I'll simply walk away, I'll say nothing."

Rose and Rayna looked at each other and then caught Sam's eye. All three women had to laugh at the idea of Vala saying nothing.

"You can say whatever you like. Your input will certainly be considered."

Vala smiled at the three of them and they stepped back three steps away from Rose and Rayna.

"Well, what do you think of your hair? In your culture is long hair on women and important part of their identity?"

Rayna laughed. "I think that perhaps I misled you when I said that ours was a simple culture. We are actually quite a complex society extremely advanced in many areas. I think that our plainness is more a reflection of our emphasis on the less material world. But such things are left up to the individual. You can dress as you please, no one cares, but if you want to have your clothes provided for you, you take what they give you." Rose and the rest of her staff laughed at the face Rayna made as she said "you take what they give you."

"I am a scholar and historian. I'm here on Earth to help your people against the Ori. In return I will be allowed to research the history of my people using your resources and to learn the skills I'll need when I return to my planet for further research. So though in the past clothes meant little to me I'm really excited by what I've seen here. I've often thought that I spent too much time buried in my studies and I doubt if I'll ever be in this situation again. To quote something Vala said to me, actually she sang it, "Girls just want to have fun". And to answer your first question, I think that I would like to have to spend less time on my hair. I assure you that we are not without vanity on my planet. Beauty, especially for women, is highly regarded. And there are many in my village who consider women's hair a large part of their beauty. Myself, I resent having to waste my time fussing with it."

Rose asked her "Rayna is there anyone here whose hair you like?"

"I think that Sam's short hair is attractive but I also like Vala's pigtails. Perhaps I can ask your opinion, what do you think would be a good idea?"

Rose smiled at Rayna and took her arm guiding her to sit at a work table in the center of the room. Vala sat in a chair close to them. "I'll make some sketches for you and you can let me know what you think." Rose was given a pad of sketching paper and a pencil by Marta, a member of her staff. The woman was about fifty years old, with a pleasant round face surrounded by short grey curls. She was small like Vala, a civilian dressed in a plain black pants suit. Marta was a designer and she had started thinking on ideas for Rayna as soon as she understood what was needed. Rose would introduce her when she was ready so Marta stepped away from the table and walked over to lean against the wall next to Sam.

Sam smiled at the woman who stood next to her. The woman's face was familiar and Sam thought that she remembered working with her before on off-world wardrobe. SG-1 usually went in first and rarely had to spend time on a planet working with people who felt more comfortable when SG teams dressed like them. Though SG-1 did do undercover work where costumes were needed. Sam thought of the leather outfits the "boys" had had to wear recently and almost laughed out loud.

Marta held out her hand and introduced herself. "Hi, I'm Marta. I've done some design work for SG-1"

Sam shook Marta's hand saying. "Please call me Sam. I have to know, are you the one who designed the leather outfits Cam and Daniel had to wear?"

Marta laughed. "I did the original design with a few suggestions from Vala. She insisted that way they would be more authentic. Then when they were being made Vala insisted on making the pants tighter. It seemed as if every time a seam was finished Vala made them rip it out and sew it closer. I have to admit that she was right about the pants, all of the women agreed. A few of the men felt they would prove to be uncomfortable but were shouted down for being big cry babies."

Sam had started smiling as soon as Marta mentioned Vala's influence on the outfits and was soon laughing in agreement about the tight leather pants. Her one regret was that Jack hadn't been a part of that mission.

Vala, Rose and Rayna had their heads together looking at Rose's sketches and discussing her options. Vala became increasingly animated as she argued for her choices, raising her voice and gesturing at Rayna's head while Rayna and Rose sat quietly ignoring her.

While she waited to see what would happen next Sam looked curiously around the work room. Marta said to her. "If you have any questions I'll be glad to try and answer them."

"Thanks Marta. I appreciate it."

Sam saw a row of lockers along the wall on her right. One section was labeled SG-1. Marta noticed where Sam was looking and said. "Would you like to check it out?"

Sam shrugged and said. "Sure, why not."

Marta opened the one labeled Mitchell and showed Sam the in famous leather pants.

"I noticed that Vala's locker is about twice the size of the rest. What's that about?"

Marta smiled as she opened one side of the double locker with Vala's name at the top. The appropriate names and ranks were stenciled above the other lockers and though one said simply Teal'c it was in standard military letters. Vala's name was also just one word but the letters were script and in pink paint.

"Vala appreciated the pink paint so much it was almost heart breaking. She rarely gets off base and it doesn't take much effort to make her life here just a little more pleasant."

Looking into the locker Sam saw racks of BDUs, they were obviously either custom made or personally tailored for Vala. "You've discovered one of her secrets. Vala is so tiny that even if she wears uniforms that are small enough she looks like a child playing dress-up wearing adult clothes. When we tailor them so that they actually fit her she looks like a woman instead of a girl."

"She certainly looks like a woman." Replied Sam.

Marta laughed. "Well, we can't help how many buttons she decides to undo. And she has been known to try and get the sewers to make the pants just a little tighter."

Sam looked deeper into the locker when something caught her eye. "Are those Daniel's tee shirts?"

Marta looked embarrassed. "Sometimes if her nightmares are worse than usual and she hasn't slept in a few nights we let her sleep in one of his shirts. It may not be right but it works. We would appreciate it if you don't report us. But we understand if you feel you must."

Sam was shocked that Marta would think she would do that, what type of person did she think Sam was. "No, I would never say anything." She couldn't resist saying. "That may not be a problem much longer; Vala will soon have her own supply of shirts."

She was surprised when Marta smiled and said. "So we've heard. Vala stopped in to chat when they returned from Rayna's planet." Sam couldn't help but wonder what else the woman might know about the personal lives of SG-1.

As if she had read Sam's mind Marta said. "Don't worry Sam. Vala does not gossip about SG-1."

"Sam, it looks like we might have a decision." Rose and Rayna had gotten up from the work table and an airman had pulled out a high stool for Rayna. Once she sat on the stool he put a piece of plastic material around her neck covering her body. He walked around her looking at her head with a sketch in his hand.

"Myself, I prefer to cut hair when it is dry. Because of the time I won't even start to discuss high lights and low lights that will be a later discussion." He undid her braids, combed her hair, took a pair of shears and started cutting. He worked fast and with determination and confidence. It seemed like only minutes and he was done. He pulled off the cape around her neck and gestured to his work saying. "Voila!"

Marta gasped and cried out. "Mary Martin as Peter Pan.! Fantastic!"

And it did look fantastic. Vala asked "I know Peter Pan. But who's Mary Martin?" No one answered her they were too busy oohing and aahing at Rayna's hair.

Sam turned to Marta and said. "She looks good. Her hair really fits the shape of her face."

Marta replied. "You sound a little surprised."

"He was so quick. I couldn't imagine what it would end up looking like."

"Sam, he's a professional. Once he did the hard part of seeing it in his mind's eye the cutting was nothing."

Rose looked around for Marta and once she caught her eye waved her over.

"We've got about twenty minutes left. What do we have for her to wear?" The turning to Rayna she asked. "As a start, is there someone on base whose clothes appeal to you?"

Vala raised her hand and began to jump up and down. Her smile disappeared when Rayna gave her a soft smile and said "Sorry. It's not me. Not that there's anything wrong with your style."

Vala said. "I know. I know. My style is very "individual". That's what Rose calls it. Marta calls it "just a little on the tacky side". I know that other people and you know who you are, think "space slut". But that's okay. I'm happy." When she said 'you know who you are' she had looked around the room at various members of the Laundry Team. They had laughed at her scowl and when she said "I'm happy" they looked as if they wanted to cheer. Especially when she added. "The funny thing is that I am happy. Who would have believed it?"

Rayna said. "I like the way that Dr. Stewart dresses. I met her when I went to the preliminary meeting for the Ori Task Force. I think she's a linguist."

Vala almost chocked. "Dr. Stewart? Are you kidding me?" Then after thinking about the woman in question she added. "I do like her shoes. She has excellent taste in shoes."

Sam tried to see Dr. Stewart in her mind. Vala's comment about shoes brought the image into focus. "She always looks nice. I couldn't give you details, except for the shoes. Vala is right. They're great."

Marta said. "Rena Stewart does always look nice. She has great taste and a great budget too. Which certainly helps. Today she was wearing what's called a shirt dress, usually in silk or some type of knit." She was using her teacher voice as she explained the style to the group. "It isn't exactly what they used to call a shirt waist dress. Though they sometimes show them with a belt. It's as if you took a man's dress shirt and made a dress out of it. There are usually cuffs and a shirt collar but the rest of the shirt is fitted to the body. Here let me show you." Marta took the sketch pad and pencil off of the table and made a quick sketch, she passed it around and they all nodded in recognition.

"But I don't have time to design and sew one in the next twenty minutes. But I'll come up with something. Joseph get Rayna's show size and show Sam and Vala the shoe closet. I want a bold color guys. The dress will be neutral, so go wild!"

Marta had a tape measure around her neck and she started measuring Rayna, turning her around, lifting up her arms, running her tape over all her body. In minutes she turned away and headed for a small combination office and workroom. She started tearing through boxes and drawers throwing clothes onto the floor as she searched. Suddenly she yelled. "I've got it. Don't worry about the size we'll make adjustments on the fly." She flew out of the room with a handful of silky material. "Its polyester but it will be okay for today. Quick somebody get this woman underwear and stockings. Come on people. Move it!" Men and women scattered through the room, bringing back articles for Marta's approval. The dress in her hand was charcoal grey and soon Rayna was shoved into a small dressing room with black bra, panties and neutral pantyhose. One of the women went in with her in case she had any problems with how things worked. A voice called out from the room "She's ready" and Marta took the dress into the room with her. In less than a minute Rayna walked out in a very simple front wrap dress with three-quarter length sleeves. The wrap itself made a wide belt around Rayna's waist. Vala and Sam brought Marta a pair of simple patent leather antique copper colored Prada pumps with a conservative two inch heel. Rayna slipped on the shoes and smiled at everyone. They were all staring at her. Vala spoke first. "You look great. Its all so simple but I actually like it."

Sam added. "Very historian scholarly in a Dolce & Gabbana slash Saks kind of way."

Marta went back into her office coming out with a short black dress jacket with subtle copper trim on the cuffs, and around the collar. "I actually bought this to go with those shoes. I can't believe you found them. This will dress it down; we don't want to look like we're going out clubbing." Rayna slipped the jacket on and Marta moved her in front of a full length mirror.

Joseph, who had cut her hair, yelled out. "Lip gloss. No makeup just gloss." He ran to a drawer and pulled out a tube. Marta asked Rayna if she liked how she looked and Rayna beamed. Joseph moved in and showed her how to apply the gloss.

Sam asked. "Won't they notice how different she looks?"

They all laughed and Marta explained. "She was already wearing a dress. Men might notice if she changed into pants, but a dress is a dress to them. And it isn't that much shorter; if we had put her in a mini-skirt it would be different. No way will they notice the shoes. They will think the hair is different but probably won't be sure how different. They'll probably think after a while that they hadn't realized how attractive she was."

Sam looked skeptical. Marta said to her. "Jason and Thomas will know. I'm not saying the other men won't think something is different I just doubt they'll figure out exactly what."

Marta, Rose and Joseph kissed Rayna and pushed her out of the room with Vala and Sam. Sam couldn't believe how much fun she had just had. Clothes and makeup hadn't ever mattered much to her, and they still didn't. But she had enjoyed working on Rayna's make over, especially she had enjoyed working with Rose and Vala and Marta. And with the rest of the team. Sam knew that she, like Daniel, spent too much time holed up by herself working long hours. Daniel did it to avoid getting emotionally involved with other people. To be honest she had to admit that she did it to avoid thinking about Jack. Sam wasn't sure which of them was the worse off, especially now that Daniel had Vala. Maybe she should be inspired by his example. Jack was no longer in command of SGC and this might be the time for her to show a little initiative.

According to Sam's watch they had exactly one minute to get to the Commissary. Vala made them stop before they got to the elevator. "Everyone take a deep breath. We are going to stroll in there as if everything is completely normal. I've decided to say that Rayna wanted to change and had needed to borrow some clothes. I think that they will notice the change from her wholesome tavern wench outfit to a more modern American dress. But I don't think they'll think anything of it if we mention it first. And we'll all go in together; we don't want her to make an entrance. Let's go, girls!"

All three of them took deep breaths to steady their nerves and stifle their giggles. Rayna hadn't understood half of what had been done to her and wasn't sure why they had all been laughing so much. Or why she had laughed along with them. She could feel that they weren't laughing at her, they were honestly happy. Helping her made them happy. And Rayna had felt Sam's emotional bonding with Vala and Marta, a bonding that was making Sam feel pleased.

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When they entered the Commissary Sam and Vala sort of huddled around Rayna until they reached the table and sat down. Vala said. "Hi guys, Rayna wanted to change so we had to borrow some clothes for her." Except for Jason and Thomas the other men simply smiled and nodded. Jason and Thomas were staring at Rayna as if she had three heads. They looked at each other then back at Rayna finally looking at Vala. She shrugged her shoulders and mouthed "What?"

Jason leaned towards Rayna and in a low voice said. "You new hair cut is very attractive Rayna. And I'm happy that Sam and Vala were able to drag up some old clothes for you to wear. I am a little puzzled about where they found a spare pair of Prada shoes laying around. Perhaps you mugged Rena Stewart?" Vala kept her poise while Sam nearly choked.

Rayna was sitting between Sam and Vala. Next to Sam sat Jason, then Thomas, then Dr. Lee. There was an empty chair next to Dr. Lee. Continuing around the table sat Teal'c, Mitchell and ending up with Daniel next to Vala. Daniel was looking at Vala trying to figure out why she seemed so excited and happy. Taking his eyes off of Vala he saw that Sam almost looked like she was going to giggle. He had the impression that it had something to do with Rayna but he couldn't figure out what. The woman seemed calm though there was something different about her. He figured that it must be the change of clothes.

Teal'c was staring at Rayna. He was often surprised at how the Tau'ri had such poor observation skills, at least when it came to people. They might be able to instantly assess a battle situation but except for Jason and Thomas the other men appeared to have not noticed the changes in Rayna's appearance. Obviously Sam and Vala had worked very quickly to accomplish the transformation. He suspected that Rose and her team had been drawn in to the plan. Though he still had no idea why it had happened he saw that Rayna's hair was now short, she was wearing a very attractive dress and he had seen her shoes before she sat down. Late one evening in the Commissary Teal'c had made the mistake of complimenting Dr. Stewart on her footwear, after a thirty minute lecture he knew more about women's shoes that he would have thought possible. And he remembered enough to recognize Rayna's shoes as expensive. Perhaps it was as simple as Rayna wanting to change into more comfortable clothing but he was uncomfortably aware of just how attractive Rayna was. He surreptitiously looked at Mitchell to see if he was paying particular attention to Rayna and then he looked at Rayna checking to see if she was looking at Mitchell. When he looked at Rayna, she was watching him. Then she smiled at him. Suddenly conscious of her abilities as an empath Teal'c attempted to make his mind blank and hide his emotions.

Rayna was the first to speak. "I hope that everyone is rested and ready to eat. We will not discuss any of the issues until after we have eaten."

No one disagreed. Everyone but the women had already gotten their food. Vala stood up and grabbed Daniel's hand. "I can't believe you didn't get any food for me. Or Sam. Or our honored guest. I'm ashamed of your manners. All of you, not just Daniel." Though she was trying to sound angry she failed completely. "Okay. Daniel and I will get my food, Mitchell you take care of Sam and Teal'c why don't you get Rayna something to eat."

Daniel and Vala took two trays and both started to pile on plates and bowls of food. The staff behind the serving tables went back into the kitchen and brought our special dishes for Vala. Teal'c was close behind them and Vala made sure that he took some of her specially prepared dishes for Rayna. Mitchell had gotten up and was filling a tray, overriding Sam's insistence that she was more than capable of getting her own dinner. He made sure that he also got some of Vala's dishes, taking a few extra for himself.

They were eating their dinner in strained silence until Rayna began to ask each person how they had ended up working at SGC. It was easy to forget that Rayna had no background information on SGC beyond a basic explanation she was given by Daniel and Mitchell as she prepared to travel to Earth. Listening to each one's story gave her a different perspective on the Stargate Program. It was interesting for them to hear each others story, they were surprised at the number of similarities as well as the fundamental differences between them. What had started as a tense and uncomfortable situation was now a lively exchange between people who discovered how little they knew about each other. Rayna was pleased as she felt their distrust of each other lessen. Their discussions would be more productive now that they felt connected to each other.

Vala was sitting on Daniel's lap finishing her third dish of ice cream and the conversations were winding down. Rayna stood. "I think that we should return to the conference room and devise an agenda for our next meeting. I, myself, am too full to be able to discuss anything more tonight. Is everyone agreeable to my plan?"

They all rose and headed for the door. Vala and Daniel stayed behind as the rest of the group went out the door.

"Daniel, I know that we can't just not go with them but we can certainly come up with an agenda in less than five minutes."

"Okay, but after five minutes I'm leaving. I'll swing by my office and meet you at your room." He gave her a quick kiss and they hurried to catch up with the group.

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Thomas, Rayna and Teal'c were the only ones left in the room.

"Okay, it's settled. I'll meet with Thomas, Jason and Dr. Lee at 9:00 tomorrow morning. Then I'll meet with Vala alone. Everyone will meet here after lunch around 2:00. I want to stress again how much I appreciate your time and effort. I hope that I will be able to repay you all."

Thomas said good night and left the room. Rayna spoke to Teal'c. "Would you be able to help me arrange to send a message to Mya tonight? Mitchell has promised to return me to my planet for a short visit to put my people's minds at rest. I have something I want to share with Mya before I return." She looked at Teal'c trying to interpret his look. She had assured everyone earlier that she did not read people's minds and that she would never invade their private thoughts. Rayna was tempted to cheat and read Teal'c's mind, but she didn't give in to temptation and decided to rely on her intuition.

"I would be most happy to assist you. Does Mya play a part in your scheme to make Vala's participation in the project unnecessary?"

"I think that the Tau'ri tend to underestimate you. And yes you are right; I will find a way to satisfy the needs of everyone. And before you ask, yes I am including my own. I thank you for thinking of me."

"Indeed. Let me escort you to speak to Walter and arrange for your message to be sent to Mya."


	31. Chapter 31

Daniel was going through some papers on his desk trying to decide what to take to Vala's room. He heard the door open and when he looked up he saw Vala walk into the room.

"Daniel, do you know what I want to do right now? More than anything."

"I think I can guess. Give me a minute to pack some work and we can get out of here."

"Darling, I'm sure what ever you think I was thinking about would be wonderful. But …"

Daniel wasn't sure how he felt when she started her sentence with "but." He forced himself to ignore the inner voice telling him that she was bored with him already. "But what?"

Vala smiled at him with one of her widest grins. "I'd really like to spend some time going over the material we brought back from the "Well of History." I also went to go over what information you have about the Nox." While she spoke Vala had gone over to the desk and now she stood as close to Daniel as humanly possible. She put her arms around his neck and as she tensed her muscles he instinctively grabbed her legs as she pulled herself up and wrapped her legs around his waist.

With her arms tightly clasped around his neck Vala began to kiss his face begging "Please, please, please. Can we?" With a bemused smile on his face without saying a word Daniel walked over and pretty much dropped her down on the work table.

"You spend months trying to seduce me and once you succeed you spurn me to do research? Perhaps Thomas has gone too far with your education". Vala was concerned when she saw the hurt expression on his face.

Vala quickly reached up and put her hands on his face saying. "I'm sorry. I wasn't thinking. There's no need to do this now. Come, off to bed with you!" She moved forward on the table and started to slide to the floor. Daniel moved closer and stopped her body halfway between the table and the floor. Once he had her trapped with his body he put his hands on her face and leaned in to kiss her. After a thorough kiss of her mouth he leaned in further and started kissing behind her ear and down her neck. Vala sighed in relief. She hadn't realized how insulted and hurt he would feel when she expressed an interest in working rather than sleep with him. He was right, her sexual pursuit of him had been so hot and heavy obviously he would expect her to be in some sort of constant sexual overdrive.

"Let's get out of here, Darling. Time's a wasting." She tried to wiggle free but Daniel continued to use his body to keep her from moving. Vala pulled back from his embrace and looked into his eyes, which to her surprise were laughing. He had a huge grin on his face. She was unsure of what was going on in his mind. "Daniel? What's going on?"

"Vala, dearest, your asking to do research with me is an amazing turn on. But I think I can control my animal desires long enough to work on our project." He kissed her briefly on the forehead and stepped back just far enough to pull her up and sit her back on the table top. "Where shall we start? How about I give you some things to read on the Nox and I'll try and take a fresh look at the text from the wall." Daniel went to a large file cabinet, opened the middle drawer and started flipping through files. Vala scooted into the middle of the table, pulled her legs up and sat Indian style waiting for the materials. Daniel brought over a precarious pile of folders; large leather bound books, Vala's Apple ibook laptop, and pad of legal paper and dumped everything on the table in front of her. He pulled out an assortment of pencils, pens and highlighters from his pocket and added them to the heap. Vala reached for the legal pad and a yellow mechanical pencil saying. "Thanks Daniel. Let me know if you want any help with the runes."

"Same thing for the Nox, Vala." Daniel returned to his desk where there was a folder containing their photographs of the wall. After pulling out one of the photographs Daniel opened the top drawer and took out paper and a pen. Vala insisted on using pencils, she liked to write down ideas non-stop as they poured out of her mind. She said that Sam called it brainstorming. He preferred to think out exactly what he wanted to say before writing anything down. Each thought the other's procedures were inefficient and counter productive. They had given up trying to convince each other to change once they realized that their styles actually complemented the other.

At least an hour had gone by when Daniel smelled the aroma of coffee and looked up to see Vala offering him a steaming mug. "Thanks." He kissed her in exchange for the coffee. She went back and sat on the table. She pulled her laptop towards her and balanced it on her knees.

"No problem, darling. I want to make sure that you'll be able to stay awake later. How's it going?"

"No breakthroughs. How about you?"

Mitchell stuck his head through the open door. "What the hell! I didn't expect to see you two here. Or at least not in here working."

Daniel waved him into the room. "We're working on the texts we found in the Well of History. It's got to start making sense sometime. Vala's checking out what we know about the Nox."

Cameron walked over and sat on one of the chairs next to the work table. Vala smiled saying. "Just the person I wanted to see."

Mitchell mimed "Who, me?"

"Yes, you! I need your encyclopedic knowledge of all things SG-1. Tell me as much as you remember from the mission reports about the first encounter with the Nox. Spare no detail."

"Are you sure you want to tell him that?"

"Quiet Daniel. I'm doing research."

"Before we start this, what do you guys think about Teal'c and Rayna?"

Vala piped up. "I think it a great match. Ishta's out of the picture so why not? She was too tall for him anyway."

Mitchell looked as if he was going to ask her what height had to do with it but thought better of it. "She seems nice enough, but don't you think she's a little young? Is there a Jaffa word for jailbait?"

Vala asked. "What does prison have to do with anything? Or is that a fishing reference I'm not familiar with? How old do you two think she is?"

Mitchell said "I figured around sixteen."

"Me, too. Except that after she changed her clothes she seemed somewhat older."

"Well I actually asked her. We worked out the math between us. She's around thirty-two in "earth years"." Vala put the phrase in air quotes, which made Mitchell laugh. She added. "It seems that similar to Jaffa her people live longer than you humans."

"Okay, calm down. I was just a little worried about the big guy."

Daniel continued to study the texts while Mitchell answered Vala's questions about the mission. Their hushed voices in the background made it easier for Daniel to study. At times the usual silence that surrounded him actually made it more difficult to concentrate. Just hearing Vala's breathing in the room had become a comfort. During the last few months as they worked together he had subconsciously recognized how much just being in the same room with her helped him focus his mind. But he had refused to accept the unwanted thoughts and dismissed them whenever they surfaced.

Daniel looked over at the two of them. Vala was listening closely and taking notes while Mitchell excitedly recited the complete mission report seemingly verbatim. They were both so intent they never looked up as Daniel continued to watch them. All three of them jumped when Teal'c cleared his throat as he walked through the door.

"Good evening Colonel Mitchell, Daniel Jackson, Vala Mal Duran." He nodded at each as he said their name.

"Muscles! There you are. What's shaking?"

"Have there been an earthquake warning?"

"No, no. Just a little Tau'ri banter."

Trying to look indifferent Mitchell asked. "So, how's Rayna doing? She comfortable?"

"Rayna is quite pleased with being at SGC. She just sent a message to Mya."

All three of them perked up. Vala spoke first. "Oh, what kind of message? Did she say?"

"I did not ask, Vala Mal Duran. It was a lengthy missive."

"Missive?" asked Mitchell.

Daniel stepped in. "Just how lengthy? She hasn't had a lot of free time while's she been here."

"I did not ask, Daniel Jackson. I would estimate that it was close to thirty pages."

"Thirty pages is a little more than a message." Remarked Mitchell.

"Vala dear. How are you two doing over there?"

"Quite well darling I'm glad to say. We're close to finishing. How about you?"

"I'm actually starving." Daniel looked at his watch and said. "Unbelievable. We've been here working for over three hours"

Mitchell looked at Daniel and Vala in surprise. "You two have been in here "working" since dinner?" They both nodded. "Trouble in paradise, kids?"

They both looked at him perplexed and he muttered. "Whatever."

Vala smiled and clapped her hands together. "Yeah! Food. Who's interested? Come on!" She hopped off the table and headed out the door.

Daniel stood up and yelled. "Wait a minute. I'm coming with."

Vala looked back saying. "That's okay. I'll be fine. I've been out of the loop. I don't even know what Ralph's practicing this week. I think it might be some sort of fish stew, bull something,"

Mitchell's voice went up as he said. "Bouillabaisse? Ralph is making Bouillabaisse? Lead on Macduff." He stood up and headed after Vala.

"Vala, hold it!" Vala stopped dead and looked back as Daniel caught up with her. "Unless you don't want me to come with you, I'd like to join you. I'm afraid you're a bad influence on me. I'm actually hungry."

"Why wouldn't I want you darling?"

"I thought maybe you'd want to spend time with your friends." After the first time he told her to wait it occurred to him that she had a life and friends on the base that had nothing to do with him.

Vala reached back and grabbed Daniel's hand. "Come along. I can't wait to show you off." As the two of them exited the room Vala said. "Mitchell, come on. You also Teal'c. It's been a strange day. Full of way too many "meetings". My ass gets sore after two hours. And so does my brain!"

The four of them headed to the Commissary laughing as they got on the elevator. "Vala, is there really a chance there'll be Bouillabaisse?"


	32. Chapter 32

Thomas Graham sat up in bed flipping through the pages of a journal. He heard a faint noise and looked up. Someone was standing in the doorway. There was light was behind the figure and the bedroom was dim, the only illumination came from a reading light over the headboard. "Jason?"

"It's me Thomas. Can I ask you a question?"

Jason was usually serious but the tone of his voice would have to be described as "dead serious". Thomas was terrified. People who only knew them as a couple thought of Jason as shy and timid often overshadowed by the more outgoing Thomas. But Jason was Thomas's rock. He depended on Jason's emotional support in order to project the outgoing larger than life persona Thomas presented to the outside world.

"Sure. What's up?" Actually he didn't want to know, but Jason wouldn't stop pushing until he got an answer.

"It seems that Rayna has your number. But she is a little too generous to my way of thinking. I'll give you that your motivations are worthy, even inspiring, But to shut me out was reprehensible. Me, as part of us, is bad, but as a professional colleague I'm not sure your behavior is forgivable. What do you think Thomas?"

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The four of them walked into the Commissary laughing loudly. Daniel and Vala were holding hands and Mitchell had his arm draped over her shoulder. People already there stared at Teal'c, he wasn't laughing but he was definitely smiling. Those members of SGC who spent time with Vala and Teal'c, playing games, watching films, even singing had actually seen him laugh. But a lot of people in the room had never seen him crack even the smallest of smiles. The three guys sat at a table close to the food line and Vala headed into the kitchen. When the group first walked in one of Vala's gang told her "You're in luck. Ralph came in early to start on his French bully fish thingy. I know he's been watching out for you."

Daniel got up and walked towards the kitchen where Vala had gone. He stopped in the doorway folded his arms against his chest and leaned against the jam looking inside the room.

As Vala went into the kitchen a new member of SGC entered the Commissary. Vala caught his eye and he smiled, glad to see that she was back home. He looked a little disturbed when he saw Daniel get up and walk towards the kitchen. He had no idea who he was, of course he had heard of the amazing Dr. Daniel Jackson. Genius, hero, ascended, unascended, all around great guy. And perfectly adorable according to the women on the base. He wasn't sure that he believed all the hype but he was willing to postpone judgment until after he met the guy. For now all he saw was some geeky civilian type who looked like he was stalking Vala. His friends were waving and trying to get his attention, they could tell by his expression that he had no idea what was going on. Wayne was a big guy, close to six feet six. He worked out and looked like he could give Teal'c some competition in some of the base games. In fact he had been claimed by the Laundry's basketball team the minute he stepped off the elevator his first day on duty. Marta had spies everywhere and was always got advance dibs on SGC fresh meat before they ever showed up on base.

Wayne glared at Daniel as he approached him. Daniel was oblivious as he watched Vala kiss Ralph before climbing up on her stool. "Hey, what do you think you're doing mister?" Wayne had put his hand on Daniel's shoulder and squeezed. Daniel jumped and turned to see what was causing the sudden pain in his shoulder.

Teal'c held Mitchell down in his eat. He shook his head "no" and Mitchell shrugged his shoulders and relaxed. If Teal'c wasn't concerned Cam was willing to just watch what might turn out to be fun. In fact he sort of hoped for a brawl. He sometimes missed the cafeteria fights from his college days.

Wayne leaned down and stuck his face close to Daniel's and almost growled. "Stay away from her. No one stalks our Vala. You'd better mind your manners pretty boy."

Mitchell snorted a laugh, almost choking, when he heard the guy call Jackson "pretty boy".

Daniel looked confused as if he had no idea what was happening. When he heard the guy say Vala's name he figured that he was finally going to meet some of her on-base friends. He was happy and excited about the prospect, smiled broadly, stuck out his hand saying "Hi. I'm Daniel. And you are?"

Wayne was shocked, he stepped back away from Daniel and almost falling over backwards. He looked desperately over his shoulder at his "friends" who were doubled over laughing.

"My God. You're Dr. Jackson." He looked stricken, even frightened when he realized who he had threatened. "I am so sorry. I apologize, I had no idea." Narrowing his eyes he muttered. "I expected you'd be scrawnier." Mitchell was almost in tears from laughing and when he heard the guy say scrawnier he thought he just might have a heart attack. The guy was looking around the room for the closest exit.

One of the Lunch Ladies who was standing behind the line putting out bowls of Jell-O yelled towards the kitchen. "Vala, you'd better get out here. Wayne's trying to defend your honor from Action Jackson."

He didn't think it was possible but Mitchell laughed even harder when he heard the woman call Daniel "Action Jackson".

Vala jumped off her stool and ran out of the kitchen, Ralph was right behind her. When she stopped suddenly he ran into her and they started to fall together. Teal'c began to worry about Mitchell; he didn't think the guy could take any more.

"Colonel, are you alright? Can I assist you in any way?"

Mitchell had put his head down on the table when he saw Ralph and Vala tumble out of the kitchen. He raised his head saying "No, no. I'm fine Teal'c. No problem." Hearing a strange noise he looked up to see Ralph and Vala start to fall, almost in slow motion, onto the floor.

Teal'c could no longer control himself. As his deep booming laugh filled the room Mitchell almost fell off his chair.

Wayne continued to look horrified, Daniel bemused and Ralph and Vala were now lying on the floor in a pile at Daniel's feet. They hadn't exactly fallen but slowly collapsed on top of each other. Vala was struggling to get up but Ralph was on top of her and too heavy for her to move. In addition to the fact that the two of them were laughing even though they didn't know everything that had happened. Falling on top of each other as Vala tried to rush to save Daniel was more than enough reason to make them laugh. Wayne and Daniel were the only people not laughing. Wayne continued to look mortified while Daniel just looked clueless. Even in his confused state Daniel was aware enough to reach down and pull Vala up off the floor. She was laughing and the look on Daniel's face made her almost slip back to the floor. He held her up, pulled her close to his chest and wrapped his arms around her as if he thought she would try and escape.

The laughter started to die down with just the occasional titter or giggle. Mitchell was the worst offender, he would calm down for a while and then look at Daniel and start laughing all over again.

Peter, of the infamous brass bed, called out. "Good to have you back Vala."

Daniel loosened his hold on Vala and gave Ralph a hand getting up. Once he was standing Daniel turned Vala to face him. "Is it always like this? No wonder they miss you." He took her in his arms and bending her back almost to the floor he gave her a classic Hollywood kiss. There was scattered applause from the rest of the people in the room. Daniel no longer looked confused and was looking around and smiling at Vala's friends, nodding to those that he recognized. Peter had grabbed hold of poor terrified Wayne and was pushing him towards Daniel. The sight of the much shorter thinner Peter trying to push the much larger Wayne across the floor threatened to start Mitchell off again. Daniel walked over and met them halfway.

"Wayne, I think what we had here was a failure to communicate." Even Vala caught the reference to Cool Hand Luke. "I'm just happy that Vala has friends who look out for her."

The laughter was quieter than before and you could almost hear the outpouring of warm feelings towards Daniel. He had been a good sport about being the object of a lot of laughter and even responded with a funny quip. Friends of Vala who had a lot of concern about her choice of partner felt relieved. Sympathy for poor Wayne came and went as people remembered the look on his face when Daniel introduced himself.

Mitchell had finally gotten himself under control and walked over to the door to the kitchen. "Okay. That was fun. But Vala, didn't you promise Bouillabaisse? Let's get our priorities straight." Turning to Ralph and holding out his hand he said. "You must be Ralph. Glad to meet you. Always thrilled to meet anyone connected with food."

Vala said. "Ralph, this is Mitchell. He can't eat as much as I do but he talks about food a lot more. He's pickier, too."

Ralph smiled and put his arm around Mitchell's shoulder. "You mentioned Bouillabaisse. Can I interest you in ..." He turned towards the kitchen walking through the door with Mitchell hanging on his every word.

Wayne was still embarrassed; he apologized again to Daniel and left the Commissary. Peter came up and introduced himself to Daniel. "Vala dearest, I left a present for you in your quarters. You'll have to tell me if you enjoy it. Ralph and Rose's crew added some of their own touches. I'm on my way home, catch you later. Glad to meet you Daniel. I'll assume that you understand the underlying threats of death and or dismemberment from all of her friends. Nuff said."

As he walked out of the room Daniel asked. "What kind of present?"

"You'll see my Daniel. I think you'll like it. Now let's get serious. Where's the food!" Vala grabbed a tray and headed for the food line.

"I've got to sit down. Would you just bring me some coffee?"

"I thought you said you were hungry?"

"Bring me whatever you think looks good. Get something you like so it won't go to waste if I don't finish it."

"Why does everyone act like I'm a human garbage disposal?"

Every person within hearing distance simply stared at her. "Okay, okay. I get it. Give it a rest."


	33. Chapter 33

_**Hi! I feel like I should apologize for the previous chapter. I've received comments that it was stupid, silly and [the final nail in the coffin not funny. However, I just can't. Writing it made me laugh. I was even proud of myself because I didn't let it deteriorate into the seemingly inevitable food fight. On reflection I think the life on base during the off hours made me think of when I was in college. I lived in a dorm for almost four years at a small private liberal arts college in the middle of a corn field in the mid-west. Students weren't allowed cars [this was way too many years ago to even count so all life centered on campus. In self contained worlds like that the hours from late at night into the early morning have a special feel. There are sometimes almost subtle shifts in behavior; people will act "out of character". Nothing drastic it's as if there was something liberating about that time. [And no, we were not all high! Later in life I worked in a very small hospital, sometimes during the day and sometimes from 11 PM to 7 AM. There was a similar change in the culture of the institution between the day and late at night.**_

_**So much for the ramblings of an aged and terminally silly person. I'm probably sort of sorry for writing the chapter, but obviously not enough to remove it.**_

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Vala was sitting in bed looking at her notes from the Well of History. She was wide awake, not an unusual state for her late at night. While she guessed that being happy with Daniel would cut back on how often she had nightmares and maybe even their intensity she knew they would never stop. They were too much a part of her; in fact they had often been her only company. Sleeping with Daniel had made a major difference in her waking process. She still held herself perfectly still until she determined if the dream was her life as Qetesh or Vala. With Daniel next to her it took only seconds for her to know. Vala had been speculating why. Qetesh had woken up next to many men before so it wasn't just his physical presence. Vala had tried to convince herself that it was because they were soul mates with a grand cosmic connection but had ended up with the answer that it was his smell, mundane as that explanation was. Vala had laughed at Marta when she tried to explain that Vala fell sleep more easily wearing one of his shirts because they held his scent. Marta told her to think of it as aromatherapy.

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When they got back to her room the brass bed was there. Ralph and Marta had also left their marks on her room. After you came through the door the walls to either side were covered with built in shelves and drawers, the door to the bathroom was to your left and along the rest of that wall was her desk and chair. There were book shelves on the wall above her desk and a wooden file cabinet to one side. Hanging above the cabinet was a large Boston fern in a macramé hanger. Ralph was an avid gardener and as a child of the sixties he could macramé in his sleep. In the corner to the right of the desk was a four foot high Norfolk Island pine in a large terra cotta pot. In December Peter had woven a string of tiny colored lights through its branches. Marta had put a red satin bow on the very top of the tree and tied small red and green bows onto the branches. The next time Teal's stopped in he brought a box of real candy canes and the two of them hung them on the tree. Vala felt they made the tree more festive with the added bonus of an easy to reach snack. Vala thought that the tree was very pretty, though a little plain. Marta was so proud of the tree that Vala never told her how much she liked the tacky over decorated trees she had seen in movies and on TV. Vala knew even before she heard it on a commercial that it was the thought that counts.

The wall across from the door was completely empty; there were no windows down inside the mountain. Vala hadn't made up her mind what to put on that wall. When they opened the door the first thing Vala noticed was the wall which was no longer empty. There were five Aubrey Beardsley prints arranged on the wall, all illustrations from Malory's _Le Morte D'Arthur_, with _The Achieving of_ _the Sangreal_ in the center. Ralph had told Vala that she could have modeled for some of his drawings.Vala saw the bed next and took a flying leap onto it, while Daniel went directly to the prints. Next to the Sangreal print was _The Lady of the Lake_. Staring at the Lady he sighed and said. "Vala, she reminds me of you." Still bouncing on the bed Vala ignored him. Daniel turned to see what the noise was and saw the bed. Vala had stopped bouncing and was looking at the large color print hung above the head board. Daniel saw her sitting still on the bed staring at the wall and looked to see what was there. Daniel recognized it as Gustav Klimt's _The Kiss_, while Vala thought it was the most romantic thing she'd ever seen. Daniel joined her on the bed, though she was sitting down Vala had started bouncing again, he put his arms on her shoulders to get her attention. He leaned in but before he reached her mouth she had jumped off of the bed and walked over to the prints.

"Daniel, did you see these? They're beautiful." Pointing at _The_ _Lady of the Lake_ she asked."Is this the one you think looks like me?"

"I didn't think you heard me."

"Nonsense darling. I always hear everything you say. Is this the manipulating lying cheating bitch?"

"Who? Guinevere? No." Daniel had started to undress, he took off one boot and dropped it onto the floor. Vala turned away from the prints to see what made the clunking sound.

"Good idea Daniel. Off with our clothes!" She sat down and started to unlace her right boot. She contined with her other boot keeping her eyes on the prints as she pulled off her socks. Still with her back to the bed Vala untucked her shirt and tried to pull it off over her head without undoing all of the buttons.

"Want a hand with that?"

"No, that's fine. I'm good." At this point Vala was trying to pull her shirt back down and unbutton it. Suddenly Daniel's hands were around her waist. He captured her hands with one of his and used the other to finsih undoing her shirt.

"Yes, you are good. But not quick enough." By now she was so tangled in her clothes that he gave up, threw her over his shoulder and carried to the bed. She lay on the bed with bare feet with her arms caught inside the sleeves, part of her head caught in the still unbuttoned shirt and her tee shirt runched up exposing her stomach. Her hair was almost covering her eyes and she tried to blow it out of the way so she could look at him. Their eyes met and they both laughed. Daniel said "I hope Rose is good at sewing buttons back on" and began pulling her shirt apart ignoring the buttons poping off.

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"So darling, how do you like the bed?"

"The extra space is nice. I'm not sure how we ended up on the floor last time, we must have seriously misjudged the size of something."

Vala rolled off of him gigling. As she slid onto the bed he turned over on his side and pulled her body close with his arms crossed under her breasts. She wiggled her body until she was facing him and proceeded to kiss his neck pressing her naked skin against his chest. He groaned loudly in protest "Unfair! Give me a minute. I just need to rest for a second."

"Which is it? A second or a minute?" Vala had moved a few inches away and stuck her elbow under her arm to get a look at Daniel's face. His eyes were closing. He smiled at her as his breathing became regular and slowed down. She whispered and lightly shoved his sholder. "Sure. Roll over and fall asleep as soon as the job is done. What a man you are Daniel. What happened to Mr. Sensative? What about cuddling? Pillow talk?" as she spoke he rolled over and clutching his pillow made quiet snoring sounds. Vala reached her body over his and kissed his neck. Waiting a few minues to make sure that he was asleep Vala got out of bed, ran to the desk, grabbed a file off the top and ran back to the bed. Shoving the file under her pillow she snuggled against Daniel, pulled own the sheet for a second and kissed the center of his back. He pulled the covers tighter around his neck and whispered. "Vala? You're here, right?"

"Yes, always." As she answered him she sat up in bed and pulled the file out. She had no problem reading since Daniel had insisted on leaving the lights on, they had compromised on the reading lamp on her side of the bed. He wanted to know why women aways wanted to make love in the dark. Vala told him that no matter how beautiful a woman was she still didn't want the man she loved to see her imperfections. She didn't want to destroy his illusions and darkness helped retain some of her mystery. He argued that she was perfect and after thanking him for his gallent lie she allowed him the one small light.

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Rayna had been writing another long letter to Mya. She decided that she would ask Walter herself to send it to her planet. Teal'c had given her an odd look when he saw the length of her message. She was getting impatient and was ready to start working on her research. The sooner she could pass the whole Thomas, Jason, Vala mess on to Mya the better. What Mitchell called the "technobabble" gave her a headache and so did all the raw emotions both hidden and exposed. Rayna had found herself liking all of them, something she hadn't expected, but she wanted a chance to explore Daniel's library, to read everything she could find about these Nox and this asscension thing. She had overheard Daniel mentioning the possability that her people were part of the Nox. Rayna wondered why he was hiding his theory from her, but she felt no guile. Perhaps when she learned more she would understand.

Tomorrow she would meet with Jason, Thomas and Dr. Lee in the morning. Then with Vala alone and the whole group would meet together after lunch. Hopefully Vala would be willing to arrange that they went to lunch when Teal'c would be available.


	34. Chapter 34

When Rayna had returned to her room there was a pile of clothing and a sheet of paper on her bed. The note was from Rose explaining that she had left Rayna a few outfits to tide her over until they could start work on her wardrobe. Rose's list was detailed and included descriptions of each item. For sleeping there was an over large white tee shirt with the words _Remember … today's the day the teddy bears have their picnic_ on the front in blue letters.Rose had written in parenthesis (I'll explain the words another time). The underwear was self explanatory. For the next day Rose suggested a pair of jeans, black half-boots with a two inch heel, a white turtle neck and a dark blue blazer. There was a red scarf with the shirt, Rose described it as a vintage paisley Liberty silk scarf, with sketches showing various ways she could tie it around her neck. There were two more outfits and directions about how to use the hamper in her bathroom. Until she was settled in one of Rose's staff would personally collect her laundry.

Teal'c had asked Rayna if she'd like him to escort her to breakfast in the morning. Rayna asked if someone could wake her in time to prepare herself for the day. Teal'c had nodded. "Indeed. I will make the arrangements."

Before changing into her new night shirt Rayna put the notes for Mya into an envelope and headed to find Walter. She had an excellent sense of direction, in addition to an excellent memory, so she was soon outside of General Landry's office. She knocked lightly to attract Walter's attention. "My dear, could you please see that this is sent to my planet? It is for my friend Mya."

Walter smiled at Rayna and took the large envelope from her hands. "Of course, no problem. I'd be more than happy to handle this for you." Landry had approved the transporting of her previous packages and told Walter to send through anything else Rayna requested, after the usual SGC security scans.

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Teal'c had knocked on Rayna's door at 8:00 having asked Walter to arrange for her to be woken at 7:00. She answered after the first soft knock. Teal'c explained that they were meeting Sam and Mitchell in the Commissary. Dr. Lee, Thomas and Jason rarely stayed on base and would take care of their breakfast before coming to work.

"Won't Vala and Daniel be joining us?"

"Vala may have already eaten, she doesn't sleep much. Daniel, however, is not at his best early in the morning. He frequently works late into the night and unless scheduled for a mission or meeting he will remain asleep later than the rest of the team. He'll most likely not be eating breakfast with us."

They walked into the room and saw Sam and Mitchell waving at them from a table, as they walked towards them they saw Vala taking her empty dishes to the tray return window.

"Good morning Rayna. How's it going?"

"I am well Colonel Mitchell, thank you."

Rayna and Sam exchanged smiles and nods. Vala returned to the table but remained standing.

"Morning Rayna! I see that Rose has worked her magic once again. You look lovely."

"Vala, make sure you tell Daniel how much everyone enjoyed the entertainment he provided last night."

"You may be sure that I'll let him know Mitchell. I'm sure that he will be pleased by your compliment. He lives to brighten your otherwise deadly humdrum life." Vala gave him a sickly sweet phony smile.

Before Mitchell could answer Vala with a smart aleck crack Sam asked. "Can I take a look at those boots Rayna?" Rayna raised her right foot in order for Sam too examine her boot. "That's exactly what I've been looking for. I'm going to have to find out Rose's shoe connection."

Vala had leaned over Sam's shoulder to look at the boots but turned when she heard her name called. It was one of the 'Lunch Ladies".

"Vala, come here and let me explain this." She had a tray in her hands which she placed on the table. "This is the electric kettle which you'll use to boil the water, this is the French Press I told you about earlier and here's a container of coffee." The rattan tray also held two silver teaspoons, two cups, two saucers and two linen napkins. The woman gave Vala a quick peck on the cheek and shooed her away with both hands. "Now get out of here." Vala smiled her thanks, waved good bye to the rest of her team and Rayna, and walked out the door carrying the tray above her shoulder like the experienced waitress she was.

"Something is wrong with this picture. I'm sure that I'm the Captain Kirk on this team

yet the geek gets breakfast in bed delivered by the sexy alien and I'm sitting here in the cafeteria waiting on myself."

Rayna looked at Mitchell in confusion while Sam burst out laughing. Teal'c spoke to Rayna "It is a joke, a reference to a Tau'ri folk tale. Mitchell is actually making fun of himself, not Daniel."

"Thank you, Teal'c. It can be confusing when a group of people do not share a common background of experiences. But also exciting and entertaining, and the explanations can provide insight into a culture."

Rayna had asked Teal'c to alert her when the time approached 9:00 am when she was scheduled to meet with Thomas, Bill and Jason. Mitchell and Sam had already finished eating when Teal'c and Rayna arrived. They stayed and sat with the two of them while they ate. Sam asked Rayna how she had slept and they exchanged pleasant small talk until Teal'c announced that it was 8:45. He'd offered to escort Rayna to Thomas's office. The four of them left the Commissary together; Sam headed to her Lab, Mitchell to his office and Teal'c and Rayna to the elevator.

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Rayna was sitting around the conference room table with Bill, Jason and Thomas. They had exchanged good mornings and everyone was looking expectantly at Rayna. She couldn't stop a sigh of frustration as she smiled but she forced an eager look on her face and began another one of these incredibly boring meetings. If Mya didn't take over for her soon she was sure she'd start screaming and never stop.

"We all surely agree that what you've been trying to accomplish would be of extreme value and that your intentions are laudable. I'm not so certain about your methods, or how you justified the potential risks for others." Thomas started to speak but she cut him off. "I do believe that if you could incur the risk yourself that you would, I'm sure you thought long and hard about what you would be asking of Vala. I also realize that she would be a more than willing participant. But you knew why she was willing and though the damage inflicted on your children, both the soldiers and the sex slaves, is horrendous I'm not convinced that you truly understand what Vala has experienced. You're correct that trying to imagine such horrors is difficult, perhaps impossible. That's why your idea of allowing people to experience, using your technology, some version of it may prove invaluable. However I suspect that once you were to undergo the experience derived from Vala's life that you would regret being responsible for her having to repeat even one small part of that life."

Bill looked relieved that Rayna seemed to be focusing on Thomas and Jason rather than him.

"I don't mean to belittle the suffering of others. Your children have been forced to perform unspeakable acts and have unspeakable acts performed upon them. But the pure evil of many Goa'uld is difficult to comprehend, hosts have not been drugged or persuaded that what they do is acceptable or even morally correct, they are not beaten or starved or physically coerced. It is their body that commits these acts, their physical being responds to another entity within them, yet they are kept aware of what is being done by that body. Some Goa'uld prefer that the host's personality retreat into their own subconscious leaving them in total control of body and mind. Other Goa'uld, such as Qetesh, take enormous pleasure in the mental torture of the host. At times even the physical abuse of the body which they then repair only to start the process once again. It becomes a game, finding ways to force the host to remain aware, to prevent the suppression of their emotional pain and suffering. Stories are told of Goa'uld rewarding hosts by allowing them opportunities to show mercy, spare lives, and end torture with a speedy death in return for cooperation. It is not just that someone is strong enough to survive being taken as a host, they are strong enough to help others at their own immeasurable expense. In order to survive as a person such a host has to find ways to accept the horror they do in order to achieve the reward of doing some small amount of good. As you would expect they feel guilt, crushing guilt, living the life of a Goa'uld. Then if by some seeming miracle they are released they berate themselves, have they done enough good to justify their existence, why did they survive when others did not, when you have felt yourself choke someone to death can you separate the person you are from the person whose body performed the actual act."

The faces of all three men showed their attempts to comprehend the life that Rayna described. Jason's weak stomach almost betrayed him once again. They appeared mesmerized by the woman as she spoke.

"Vala learned to cope. Most former hosts do not. If they are not insane before they are released they soon become so. But Vala's ability to balance her past with her present is tentative, she does not allow herself to dwell on her time as a host, but the guilt she feels is very strong and often too close to the surface. She is a master at hiding herself from people which requires her to be able to hide from herself."

Rayna looked Thomas directly in the eyes and he was unable to look away. "I'm sure that you're quite skilled at your craft Thomas. But I fear Vala is more skilled than you, she's fooled many, you know only as much as she allows you to know. The miracle of her love for Daniel is that she'll open up to him; there will at last be a person she'll allow to know her. No one should stop that and no one will stop that."

Rayna sighed once again and taking a deep breath said. "I'm sorry, this is over. There can be no other conclusion. You must stop your project. Your project will stop!"

Thomas spoke first with Jason and Bill chiming in immediately. "Of course, it will."

"I will let the rest of the team know your decision. You, Thomas, can notify general Landry and anyone else you have been working with. However, you may wish to postpone those actions. I may be able to provide you with assistance to rework your project."

Jason leaned towards her and took her hands. "If you would help us we would be immensely grateful. How can we persuade you?"

Thomas was giving her a strange look as if he suspected her mind was in conflict. "I don't think that she will Jason."

Jason looked crushed and pleaded with his eyes.

"It's not that I don't think your work is important and I fear that I may sound callous. I am an empath and I do feel the pain of others, but I am not skilled in helping others. I am a scholar, I came to your planet because I want to explore my people's past, I want to understand our origins, who or what we are, where we are from, what we can do and how we are able to do it."

Thomas smiled. "I sense that you still do not intend to abandon us and our work."

"You are correct. I have been providing my friend Mya with information and details about you and your work. Mya wanted me to evaluate your desire to truly help others and if you would be willing to make sacrifices, your own sacrifices, in order to do so. She is willing to work with all of you. I agree with the decision to let Vala free of her commitment, but it was Mya's decision and if you had not agreed she would not help. Mya is a better person than I; we are not all the same in my world. Mya, as are many of my people, embraces the ability to accomplish good. I agree in the abstract, but I do not have the patience. I like people but my studies are where I find fulfillment. I will work with SGC in order to stop the Ori or at least prevent as much of their evil deeds as we can, and there my studies will help. We can achieve good each in our own way. Men such as Teal'c are warriors who fight for good with their bodies, you and Mya fight with your compassion and minds I hope to provide resources and answers for all of you."

Rayna stood up looking anxious to leave. "I hope that we will be able to help you. I have faith in Mya. But now I must leave you. As callous as it may sound, all of this thinking about pain and suffering is too painful for me to handle for such long stretches of time."

As Rayna left the room Bill got up. "I'm really happy that this Mya person will help you. Please feel free to contact me when you start working on the hardware and software again. If you still need it." He backed away from the table towards the door. "It was very interesting working with both of you."

Jason couldn't help but laugh. "I don't think he could have gotten out of here more quickly if he tried."

"Do you think I won't be welcome at the Sunday morning games?"

"If you give him a little time to calm down Thomas I'm sure he'd be happy to see you there. He was just so frightened that Rayna would attack him he couldn't see straight."

"She was angry with the right person. I was dishonest with you and I took advantage of Bill. I knew that he was too removed, that he didn't see Vala as the actual person Vala. But I was obsessed, I only knew that I was right, that being right meant I could do whatever was needed. Jason, am I some sort of megalomaniac? Why didn't I see myself for what I was becoming?"

"I have no idea what to say to you. You feel guilty, and you should. There is no excuse for what you did."

Thomas looked as if he had been punched in the stomach; he was trembling as he looked at Jason with fear in his eyes.

"But I forgive you. I love you too much not to forgive you. I know that I can't prevent you from making the same type of mistake again, only you can do that. I trust you and believe that you won't and now you have to trust and believe in yourself."

Thomas walked over and knelt on the floor next to Jason. He laid his head on Jason's lap and began to cry softly. Jason kissed the top of his head and let him cry. When he had realized the full extent of Thomas's betrayal of both him and Vala he was unsure of his reaction. He felt empty when he looked at Thomas. But he had forgiven him and in time he hoped his forgiveness would prove to have been deserved. Contrition alone was worth little without sincere attempts to make actual changes.

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Rayna practically flew out of the room; she was as relieved as Bill was to escape. She had kept her promise to Mya and was now released from her obligations. Rayna felt it was her reward that she'd get to talk to SG-1 about Vala's release. She'd made plans to meet with Vala alone and then after lunch with SG-1, but that would take too long and she'd have to repeat herself. Mya would probably have wanted to be sensitive and spend time with Vala first, explain how and why the decision had been made, ease her past any guilt she might feel, etc. Rayna decided that if it was her she'd want to get it over with quickly. In spite of Mya's belief that Vala was fragile, Rayna didn't think Vala needed or wanted any special treatment. Rayna didn't think that Vala should get involved with Thomas and his project but not because she was a victim. Vala wasn't a victim because she refused to be one. Rayna had a great deal of respect for Vala, too much respect to treat her as a tragic figure.

Rayna asked Walter to track down Teal'c for her. He made a few phone calls and then sent her to the gym. She stood in the door watching Teal'c spar with an airman. It was an amazing sight. Teal'c was in total control of the match letting his partner think he was going to make contact with his staff only to be swept off his feet. Rayna watched the two men, fascinated by Teal'c. The men on her planet, actually all of her people, were short in stature and tended to be on the slight, if not scrawny, side. Whereas Teal'c was quite different. Vala had described him as a 'hunk' and explained the meaning of the word. If she understood correctly Rayna was in complete agreement. Sam had hurriedly attempted to dissuade Rayna from copying Vala's approach to Earth male/female relationships. Rayna had laughed explaining that, highly evolved as they might be; they had shameless flirts on her planet though it wasn't her personal style.

Teal'c had caught a glimpse of Rayna right before he knocked his sparing partner off of his feet. He reluctantly admitted to himself that he may have been trying to impress her with his prowess when he used his staff to toss the airman further across the room than necessary. Teal'c thought that there was no change on his usual stoic face but Rayna caught a fleeting self-satisfied expression. Teal'c offered his hand to his opponent and after pulling him to his feet he turned to Rayna.

"Rayna. May I help you?"

She smiled and walked towards him and was pleased to see a smile cross his face. "Yes, please. I would like to meet with all of SG-1. Now if at all possible."

"Let us go to Daniel Jackson's office. Perhaps we will find both him and Vala Mal Duran there." They walked side by side through the hallways to Daniel's office. The door was open and they could see Daniel sitting at his desk writing in a notebook. Vala was lying on her back on the work table with her knees up and her head on top of a large book covered by Daniel's jacket. There was a laptop computer on her stomach and she was scrolling down through pages of text. There was a large plate on the table next to her with a half eaten sandwich, two apple cores, an open bag of potato chips and two untouched bowls of Jell-o. Teal'c knocked on the inside door jamb and they both looked up. Vala slid the computer off onto the table and jumped down to the floor.

"Hi, guys! What's up? Anybody hungry?" She gestured to the plate and looked embarrassed when she saw what little remained of her snack. "I can get you something else. What would you like? How about a beverage?"

Daniel broke in. "Not everyone is as fixated on food as you are darling." Standing up he moved next to Vala and put his arm around her waist.

"Rayna, I know that you wanted to speak with me. But could it wait? Daniel and I may have found something of interest in the runes from the South wall of the Well of History."

"Vala, I don't need to speak with you alone. However, I would like to have a few minutes with all of SG-1. It will not take long, and then perhaps you would show me what you are working on."

"Sounds like a plan. Vala and I will see if we can use the conference room near Landry's office. You and Teal'c try and track down Sam & Mitchell and we'll meet outside of the General's office."

"Indeed Daniel Jackson. We will meet you there."

Daniel and Vala headed towards the office. "Daniel, maybe we should stop in the Commissary and get some snacks for everyone. I know where there's a stash of oatmeal cookies …" her voice faded as they turned the corner.


	35. Chapter 35

_**Earlier that morning in Vala's room –**_

Vala had quietly opened the door to her room and backed in with the tray in her hands. She put it down on the desk next to a plug for the electric kettle. Looking over at the bed to make sure Daniel was still asleep, Vala walked over and sat crossed legged on the floor looking up at Daniel's face. As clichéd as it sounded she wanted to remember him the way he looked now, asleep on 'her' bed. Maybe if they'd had more time together it would have ended up 'their' bed. She felt incredibly grown up having decided to stay and say goodbye in person. Of course she planned to ply him with coffee first.

Vala had gotten up in the middle of the night, which wasn't an unusual occurrence for her, and written a note to leave behind. But her old friend guilt had prevented her from going through with it. She owed Daniel more than that. When she told him to his face that she had decided to go with Thomas and Jason he would understand.

As he began to stir she got up off the floor and plugged in the kettle. Daniel dragged himself out of the bed and headed to the bathroom. He walked sleepily past Vala, yawning he said "Good morning" and kissed her cheek. When he came out he stood behind Vala watching her measure the coffee.

"Where did you find all this? I'm really impressed, and grateful. Eternally grateful!" Daniel was smiling and leaned forward to kiss the back of her neck.

"Go back to bed, darling. I'll bring it over to you." Vala had moved forward out of the way of his kiss.

Daniel nodded to himself and returned to bed. It wasn't long before she brought the tray over and sat it on the bed. There were two full cups of coffee Vala took one and sat down on the floor.

"What's up Vala?"

"Now Daniel, we need to talk. I've decided …"

"We need to talk? You've definitely been watching too many 'chick flicks'. Who do I have to blame for that?"

Vala had planned her speech carefully and Daniel was throwing off her rhythm. "I've been thinking …"

"That was your first mistake."

"Daniel?" Vala wasn't sure if she had heard him correctly. He was smiling at her, almost laughing, when he made his comments.

"Not hiding your 'Dear John letter' when you went to the bathroom was your second."

Vala knew it was an Earthism when he put air quotes around 'Dear John letter' but it wasn't one she was familiar with, though she knew what letter he was talking about.

"A 'Dear John letter", where a girl tells the guy to "kiss off", an 'I love you, but…' letter written when a woman is too much of a coward to dump the guy in person."

Daniel was still smiling. Vala had hoped that Daniel wouldn't be completely devastated when she told him her decision, but he was way too happy.

"What letter? What're you talking about?" When you've been found out she knew the best thing to do was go on the offensive. Often you could confuse the person and deflect their attention from whatever you'd done.

"I woke up and realized that you weren't in bed but I saw that the bathroom light was on. And that you had been writing something at the desk and figured I would take a look at it, expecting it to be something about the runes. You can imagine how confused I was by the first few sentences I read."

Vala tried to remember exactly what she had written in those sentences.

"Then I heard a noise from the bathroom."

Vala's head snapped to attention. She knew that she wasn't going to like what he said next.

"Someone was in there crying. Crying very loudly. You know that it takes me time to process situations. However I'm not a complete idiot; I knew there was a connection between your letter and the crying. I ignored my first impulse to throw open the door and forced myself to read what you'd written."

"Oh, Daniel. I'm so sorry. You weren't supposed to read that. I changed my mind. I knew that I had to talk to you in person."

"I know. I pretended to be asleep when you came out. I heard you rip up the letter and leave the room. I was afraid that I would betray myself."

"Oh, my dearest Daniel."

"By laughing out loud."

"Daniel?"

"What? You were still crying loudly and I knew I'd have enough time to at least skim what you'd written. I almost lost it then and there. I thought I loved you but I would come to my senses when the novelty of the sex wore off? Or how about I'd want more than just a physical relationship and I deserved more then you could give me? Or that I'd stay with you under some misguided sense of obligation? Yada yada yada. How did you keep a straight face when you wrote that crap? Though if you were scared enough maybe you convinced yourself it made some sort of sense."

This was not going according to her plan. Vala felt like stamping her feet in frustration but she didn't want to give him the satisfaction. "I just want to work with Thomas and Jason and do something good. You can't stop me."

"Why would I want to stop you? If that's your decision fine. But it doesn't mean we have to break up."

Vala frowned at Daniel.

"Unless your leaving me has nothing to do with their project. Unless you want out before I can leave you. Maybe you don't trust being happy or you don't think that either one of us deserves to be happy. Are you scared that we'll fight? That if we fight I'll leave? That any conflict or disagreement will let the serpent into the garden and our paradise will end. I think that we're both angry with each other right now. I know that I'm pissed off. How about you?"

"Okay. Yes, I admit it. I'm mad at you."

"But we're both still happy. We both still love each other."

"Okay. Yes, I admit it."

"Admit what?"

"That I love you. And I was scared."

"Good enough. I accept your apology. Why don't you make yourself useful? The coffee's cold."

"Apology? Apology?" Vala's was furious and there was a murderous look on her face. She got up off the floor and bending over the bed she reached out and grabbed Daniel by the neck of his tee shirt looking as if she intended to scratch his eyes out. Daniel grabbed her shirt and pulled her down on top of him wrapping his arms around her so she couldn't move. She glared at him and he rolled over so she was underneath him. He kissed her and she pulled her head back and looked him in the eyes. After a few seconds she smiled, kissed him back and said. "Okay. I apologize. If you get off me I'll get the coffee."

"Dilemma. Coffee or meaningless sex with you? I pick coffee." He rolled off her body and the bed. As he plugged the electric kettle into the outlet he asked. "When are you meeting with Rayna? Do we have time to go to the office and do some work?"

"It's only 9:30. I don't expect her until at least 10. Take your shower and get dressed. I'll pick up some food and meet you there."

"Alligator."

"Crocodile."

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Teal'c and Rayna had located Sam and Mitchell and brought them to Landry's office. Walter told them to go on into the Conference Room Daniel and Vala were already there. There was a plate of cookies and a bowl of fruit in the center of the table, Vala had a pile of cookies in front of her on a napkin and was taking a bite out of an apple when they came in and sat around the table. Sam took the chair next to Vala, Teal'c and Rayna sat next to Sam leaving Mitchell next to Daniel.

"Anybody hungry?"

Mitchell took a cookie asking. "No pie?"

Vala gave him a haughty look. "I was informed that pie required more than five minutes notice."

Reaching for the plate Sam said. "Cookies are good. Chocolate chip! Good job Vala."

Teal'c asked Rayna. "Would you like to try one? I have found that most non-Tau'ri are quite taken with chocolate. Even Jaffa warriors have succumbed."

Rayna took a cookie but before tasting it she started to talk. "I just finished with Thomas, Jason and Bill. The boys and I had a lengthy discussion covering a number of topics." Taking a bite she spoke to Mitchell. "You're right. Using that memory device is just wrong and I'm not convinced that Bill's adapted version is that much better." When she tasted the cookie she smiled at Sam. "I agree, Sam. Good job, Vala."

Vala said "Thanks. What does Thomas want to do now? Should I pack?"

"What I have to say is very simple. As far as you SG-1 is concerned it's over."

"What do you mean 'over'?"

"They aren't interested in you anymore Vala."

Vala's eyes narrowed in surprise and disbelief. "What the hell do you mean, not interested? Why? What happened?"

Daniel had pulled his chair close to hers and reached for her hand.

"Daniel, stop grinning. You look like an idiot." Vala tried to sound angry and not show her relief. She wasn't very successful if the way he looked at her was an indication.

"We had a nice discussion and decided that the project, as it was, will stop. The goal is laudable but the proposed method was unreasonable. It made no sense to take such risks." Vala started to protest, but Rayna put up her hand to stop her. "Don't worry Vala great things will be done for the children. And Thomas may ask you to help him with his adult patients from SGC; those whose trauma was induced by Goa'uld and other alien possessions or torture. They are not as insightful as children and Thomas feels that sharing your experiences with them will be highly beneficial and your appearance of emotional recovery will be inspirational. I have made arrangements with your General Landry for my friend Mya to provide them with help to rework the project."

Mitchell looked shocked. "General Landry? How'd he get involved?"

"He's been involved since the beginning when he first introduced Vala to Thomas. He has a strong interest in PTSD in soldiers, especially those under his command." Mitchell looked disquieted when Rayna said 'under his command.'

"Someone he called the 'first lady' is very involved with helping those damaged children. It seems that she is quite an important person to your General. You can trust Mya. She will work hard and accomplish much. Actually Vala she may do a better job than you. Mya will be able to help the boys with people like Landry's lady, she can advise them about their reactions to their plans and how best to appeal to their concerns"

Sam looked at her team and then at Rayna. "That's it? It's really over? Thank God." She got up and went around to Vala. Saying nothing Sam hugged Vala then let go and hugged Daniel. Vala looked surprised at how tightly Sam's embrace had been and then again when Sam put her arms around her again this time kissing her on the cheek. Sam had tears in her eyes until Daniel put his arms around Sam who had her arms around Vala. Sam and Vala started to laugh. As Daniel squeezed harder the two women laughed harder. They broke apart when Mitchell yelled. "Cut it out. What's with you guys? What are Teal'c and I? Chopped liver? There will be no group hug without the whole team."

"Indeed. Well said, Colonel Mitchell."

Mitchell made it to the three members of his team seconds before Teal'c, which put Teal'c on the outside. Everyone laughed even harder as Teal'c tried to reach around the other four. Rayna was smiling when she felt someone enter the room.

"Break it up, SG-1." The SG1 scrum jumped apart at the voice and Mitchell and Sam stood at attention. General Landry smiled saying. "At ease." Once everyone was sitting down he said. "Well, Rayna, let's see about getting your friend Mya here. Colonel Mitchell, as I remember it, you promised to bring Rayna back to her planet so they could be reassured of her wellbeing. Be ready in an hour. You're all dismissed." Landry left the room and only Walter, who was in the hallway, saw the wide grin on his face.

"Well, I'm ready to start work on the reason I came here in the first place. My information gathering for Mya is completed. But I have yet to start on my studies. Daniel and Vala would it be possible to schedule a time when we can discuss out approach to discovering the secrets of my people?"

Sam started to say. "What about..?"

"Don't worry Sam. I will share what I know about our powers and hopefully anything you find about technology will not only help against the Ori but also in my quest for answers."

Mitchell asked. "Just what did you guys do the stay out of their clutches?"

"We tried to stay out of their way and to confuse them and hide. As you know we can move from place to place by just thinking of a location. We can glow and fade until we are almost transparent. Sam, your idea of being 'out of phase' may prove fruitful. Though we prefer not to and only resort to it in times of danger we can influence people's thoughts such that they will ignore things that are right in front of them."

Teal'c said it first. "Jedi mind trick."

"I knew it! That's exactly what I told you guys." Mitchell felt vindicated and looked at if he wanted to kiss Rayna. Teal'c wasn't at all happy once he comprehended what Mitchell was thinking.

"We react to the presence of these Ori with an almost physical reaction. Much as we did with the Goa'uld. This I think people like Mya, our most skilled empaths, will be able to develop in empaths on other worlds. Natural talent can be enhanced with training and practice."

"There is an Earth saying 'he who fights and runs away will live to fight another day.' If we can help people to be safe, to prevent the slaughter of complete planets, until after we vanquish the Ori we will be doing a great thing."

Teal'c added. "I agree Colonel Mitchell. Warriors should fight battles not innocents who know nothing of the art of war. No one should have to know such horrors, but that day has not yet come."

"Rayna will come with me and Vala. Teal'c come by our office and pick up Rayna before dinner, take her back to her room then we'll meet Sam and Mitchell for dinner."

Vala said. "Mitchell, either you or Sam, whoever the General likes best, should ask permission to go off base and take Rena to an Earth restaurant."

To her surprise Sam and Mitchell said together. "Good idea."


	36. Chapter 36

Rayna, Daniel and Vala were sitting around the worktable pouring over photographs from the Well of History.

"I'm sorry that we haven't gotten anywhere Rayna. We're not giving up. I just think we need to figure out a way to approach this from another angle."

"Daniel, I understand. Other students of our planet, like me, have been trying to make sense of this for many years. Some gave up in frustration, some died without giving up and I fear that some were driven crazy."

"Well, I can relate to that! I'm a little into Crazy Land on my best days. This just might push me into the abyss."

Daniel kissed Vala, saying. "Crazy looks good on you."

"What about Rose? Did she think she could help? They have a pretty comprehensive research database covering clothing designs, material, sewing methods, etc. Perhaps that type of information, that often reflects different aspects of cultures, will provide some context for our work. She hoped to come up with a search algorithm or two based on your knowledge. Maybe the results could help us work out a time line."

"Rose and her crew are working on it, Vala. I worked with Marta for over two hours, she says she'll get back to me, but for now she needs time to process what I gave her. There is a lot of information in the database but working out a search strategy is difficult, it is an art not a science. I do think they'll be able to help but, as is it is with much research, when results will be produced is unpredictable."

"Vala and I are really stuck on coming up with some sort of timeline. Dating is difficult enough on Earth but on other worlds it's almost impossible. We're used to using tools such as carbon dating for items that were at once point carbon based life forms or thermoluminescence for crystalline materials. Our physicists work constantly on determining off-world radiation doses, rates of decay, etc. But even when we don't know the physical age of items we can ususally work out some sort of order, which came first, what was in between etc. We are able to make a guess at the relationships between artifacts, writing, language, technology."

"Daniel, I think that we need to take a rest. It's close to the time when we're to meet for dinner. Teal'c should be here soon."

"Food! What a great idea. I'll give Teal'c a call and tell him you're ready. I'll go by the Commissary and say hi to my friends, while you and Daniel freshen up, then I'll track down the rest of the guys."

"Saying hi to her friends means having a pre-dinner dinner."

Vala ignored Daniel's aside and called Teal'c.

"Teal'c'll be here in a flash he's in the gym with Mitchell. He'll talk to Sam while Teal'c takes Rayna to her room and we'll meet here in an hour. See you guys." Vala was almost out the door as she waved good-bye.

Daniefl and Rayna both stood up and stretched. "Does she ever run out of energy?"

"Ask Teal'c to tell you about the Energizer Bunny."

While they waited on Teal'c, Rayna and Daniel talked about the return to her planet. They were going back the next morning and both were excited about digging through the Well of History. Vala had decided to, as she put it, forego the magic of Planet van Trapp. She wanted to go back over her original inventory with Marta and bounce ideas off each other. There was a knock on the door jamb and Teal'c came into the room. He smiled and nodded at Rayna. Daniel tried to pay close attention to how often Teal'c smiled at her and if there was any major chnages in his demeanor. Both Vala and Sam had given him strict instructions, he was to report back any and all details that he observed. Normaly he would have refused or ignored such an asinine request, but Vala and Sam together were too scary. He was too much of a coward to even think about crossing them. His first thought was that Vala was a bad influence on Sam but there was something about the expression on Sam's face as she explained their demands that convinced him think that Vala was actually innocent this time. There was too much of Jack in that look not to make him incredibly nervous. And afraid, very afraid.

"I'm going back to our room and we'll meet you here in an hour." Daniel never noticed the eyebrow Teal'c raised when Daniel said 'our room.'

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There was a tray with an empty plate and glass on the desk, a half eaten bag of barbeque potato chips on the bed and two Hershey bar wrappers in the wastebasket. The shower was running and Daniel started to strip off his clothes while he walked towards the bathroom. As he pulled back the shower curtain, Vala turned towards him saying. "Okay, Daniel. What's up with you and showers? Do you have some sort of running water fixation?"

"It's more efficient, you already have your clothes off. The water is immaterial." As if to prove his point Daniel picked her up and carried her into the room, he was about to drop her on the bed when she yelled at him. "Daniel, I'm soaking. At least go get a towel and help me dry off." He hoisted Vala up over his shoulder and went back into the bathroom grabbed three towels and returned to the bed. He spread one towel on top of the bedspread, wrapped another one around her head in an attempt at a turban trying to capture all of her wet hair, stood Vala on the bed on top of the towel and proceeded to use the third towel to dry off the rest of her. Soon all three towels were in a damp heap on the floor and the two of them were in their own damp heap on the bed.

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Damp and out of breath Daniel and Vala raced through the hall towards Daniel's office almost sliding around the corner they tumbled through the doorway.

Daniel asked. "No one's here. We're the first ones?"

Vala jumped up onto the work table after shoving aside two large books, three file folders and a laptop. She pulled her legs into a Lotus position. Vala had started taking Yoga lessons offered at SGC. One of the new martial arts trainers had worked at a spa in another life. She was planning to convince Teal'c into joining the class. Vala thought that he might be interested in the meditation techniques especially one the teacher called 'steady gazing'. The description made it sound like Teal'c's usual behavior and had made her laugh when she imagined Teal'c listening to the teacher's description. She was trying to remember how to hold her hands once she had them resting on her knees palms up when Daniel said her name in an aggravated tone.

"Vala! I noticed that all the stuff you moved was mine. You could've pushed your laptop and files to the side just as easily. It's almost as if you think your work's more important than mine." He kept the scowl on his face for at least ten seconds before laughing.

Vala stuck her tongue out at him, closed her eyes keeping her tongue out while she tried to remember her Mantra. Daniel contemplated pushing a folder of her photographs off the table on to the floor and sitting next to her. Fortunately he was saved from what could've been a very dangerous move when Mitchell came in.

"Hi guys." Seeing Vala on the table he said. "Very flexible, Vala. I'm impressed." As he complimented her Mitchell looked at Daniel as if he expected him to make a comment.

"Sam, did either of you talk the General into letting us out for an evening?"

"Well Vala, Mitchell made the proposal but I cinched the deal." Sam smiled at Mitchell.

"Okay, maybe asking to go to the biker bar on the highway south of town wasn't the best suggestion. But it did make your idea sound more reasonable. He ended up arguing about where we could go and forgot about the whole question of our even going anywhere." Mitchell looked very satisfied with himself.

Vala opened her eyes and said "Did I hear 'biker bar'?" In her excitement she started to topple over until Sam pushed her shoulder to level her body.

Teal'c and Rayna walked in and Rayna asked what a 'biker bar' was. Vala explained to here that it was usually easier to hold off on your questions about Tau'ri culture and language until you had at least five, it was easier in the long run. Vala assured her if it was something she needed to know at that exact moment one of them would help her out.

"So Sam, where are we going?"

"Not really anywhere I'm afraid. The General was worried that if we went out to eat in public that our conversation might be overheard. And for some reason he feels we might have some compromising conversations, especially having added another 'space babe' to the group. That's Mitchell translation of another off world visitor with no previous exposure to Earth society."

Vala uncrossed her legs asking. "So what's the plan?" She smiled and said to Rayna. "Space babe. Question number two, after biker bar."

"If its okay with you guys Landry agreed to a class trip to the supermarket, Blockbuster and then back to my house. I realize it's the same old, same old to us, but nicer for Rayna then eating in the Commissary. What'd you think?"

Vala looked disappointed but quickly smiled at Rayna. Before she could say anything Rayna spoke up.

"Except for the 'blockbuster' I think I understand your proposal. I would be pleased to spend an evening with you in this manner. Preparing a meal together is an excellent way to develop friendships."

Mitchell broke in. "Yeah, yeah. Whatever. Let's get to the important part, the food. Right, Vala?"

"Absolutely. Let's make a menu." She unfolded her legs and reached for a pen and a piece of paper. Daniel handed her a blank tablet, taking the notes of his latest translations out of her hand. "We should each volunteer to make a dish. Sam, why don't you buy ice cream? Chocolate of some kind I think."

Daniel said. "That wasn't very subtle, Vala."

Sam laughed. "I know my limitations. That's sounds good to me."

"Okay. Move along. Time's a wasting." Mitchell and Vala were now fighting for possession of the paper and pen.

"I think that Rayna's people do not eat the flesh of animals."

Rayna put her hand on Teal'c's arm. "I'm really quite willing to undergo new and different experiences. Daniel, don't you feel that students should immerse themselves in a culture in order to better understand it?"

Sam and Vala exchanged looks when Rayna smiled up at Teal'c and said 'new and different experiences.'

Daniel looked confused. "Sure, I guess so." realizing that no one was going to help him out. "Why don't we go to the store and see what catches our fancy?" He took Vala by both arms and pulled her gently down to the floor. Vala mouthed 'catches our fancy' to Mitchell who shrugged his shoulders. The group followed Daniel out of the room and headed towards the elevator. Rayna was still wearing her jeans and had borrowed a tee shirt from Sam. The rest of them, including Teal'c, were also wearing jeans and tee shirts. Teal'c had on a straw cowboy hat, having explained to Rayna the need to cover his forehead.


	37. Chapter 37 Everclear warning

**This is a very short chapter but I wanted to get my 'be very careful about Everclear' warning posted ASAP.**

_Regarding Kennie Gajos's message that __**"Everclear is actually lethal in 'Jell-O' shots**__**"**__ I certainly didn't mean to encourage people to do Everclear Jell-O shots. In fact, I would say in general do not touch Everclear. Whether or not it's lethal, there are plenty of other types of alcohol available. Traditionally grain alcohol's value lay in its price [cheap and ability to get people drunk quickly because of its high proof and lack of taste. When mixed with fruit juice it's difficult to tell that there's alcohol in the punch and very easy to drink a lot in a small amount of time. _

_The warning on the Everclear label says: "not intended for consumption unless mixed with non-alcoholic beverage." Drinking straight grain alcohol can burn and dissolve the mucus membranes in your throat. I've read that you should never replace the water, in addition to the Vodka, in Jell-O shots with Everclear. However, there is a question if you could actually do so. If the alcohol solution is too concentrated it will denature the proteins in the gelatin, I don't know about that, never having tried it. My Everclear experience was way pre-Jell-O shots._

_A lot of people drink or have drunk Everclear with no problems. (Myself included while at college in Illinois.) but I would definitely discourage its use by anyone. However, I think attempting to dissuade people from potentially harmful behavior by exaggerating or misrepresenting the danger is counterproductive. In my day, when it was claimed that marijuana use __**always**__ led to drug addiction, once young people realized that it wasn't true they'd sometimes dismissed legitimate claims about the dangers of drug use. (Trust me. Been there, done that.)_

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"Teal'c why don't you take Mitchell and Vala to pick out the DVDs? The rest of us can pick out the ice cream and pay for the food. Blockbuster's less than a block away. We'll meet you at the car." They had driven together in Mitchell's car; it was an old and really large American car, a "classic", that had been owned by a little old lady in Kansas. In fact said "little old lady" was his grandmother and she drove it a lot of pretty hard miles. And she had the speeding tickets to prove it. For SG-1 the best thing about it was that it could seat six adults in comfort, even when Teal'c was one of them. For her part Vala just loved the fins.

"Okay, guys. What shall we watch? I'll give you guys extra input since you're from out of state like Rayna."

Everyone got to he car at the same time, once the bags were in the trunk they piled in and Cam drove towards Sam's.

Daniel asked Mitchell. "So what are we watching tonight?"

"It wasn't an easy choice. Vala wanted _"Sound of Music"_ but I think she was just being a smart aleck."

Vala started to protest but Daniel put his hand over her mouth saying. "I'm sure that she was. Rayna, you can add that to your list and be sure that you make Vala explain her joke." Vala stuck her tongue out at Daniel when he took his hand off her mouth. As he leaned in to kiss her Mitchell yelled back. "Now cut that out you two! No necking in my car, unless we're at the drive-in."

Rayna had her tablet on her lap and as she wrote she repeated. "Necking and drive-in, right?" Mitchell almost choked when he heard her but was able to turn it into a cough.

"I thought a comedy would be a good idea, but for some odd reason Teal'c and Vala didn't think that "_Dumb and Dumber_" was a good choice for Rayna's introduction to Earth popular culture."

Sam prompted him. "So? What did you end up with?"

Vala answered for him. "Teal'c fought with Mitchell and surprise, surprise, Teal'c won. We got _"E.T.",_ Teal'c insisted. He had all sorts of good reasons but I didn't really listen. When we wouldn't let Mitchell have his "funny" movie he thought that we should get something serious that would speak to what he called "the human condition", insisting that it transcended all life forms. He was looking for something from Shakespeare when he found one that he was convinced we should rent. It was called _"Schindler's List"._ Teal'c had seen it and while he agreed it was an excellent film and he thought I should watch it sometime. That it showed how one person's fight against great evil can accomplish great good. But he felt it wasn't the best choice for an evening of light entertainment and reminded Cam that an empath just might need to prepare themselves before such an experience."

Sam and Daniel had both reacted strongly when Vala said "_Schindler's List_" taking deep breaths which they slowly let out as she made it clear that Teal'c had over ruled Mitchell.

"So we got _"E.T."_ I hope you have a lot of Kleenex, Sam. I love that movie! I also picked up _"Finding Nemo"_ and _"The Lion_ _King"._ No one doesn't like cartoons with animals."

"So who's cooking what? I bought the ice cream so my parts done."

"We're all making tacos together. I got both the crispy corn shells and the flour tortillas, beans in case Rayna doesn't like the ground beef, lots of cheese and other good fillings."

"Jalapeños?"

"Yes, Daniel. And three types of Salsa."

Mitchell chimed in. "Daniel got all sorts of healthy salad fixings so I decided to go with the fun stuff. We're going to start off with chips, dips, mini "pigs in a blanket", Buffalo wings and beef jerky. Then pretzels and popcorn for the movie." He saw Rayna out of the corner of his eye writing down 'pigs in a blanket' and "Buffalo wings".

Sam looked askance at Mitchell. "Beef jerky? Red neck, much?" Mitchell and Daniel laughed with Sam and when they saw Rayna writing down 'red neck' all three of them laughed even harder.


	38. Chapter 38

WARNING: No plot advancement what so ever. Silly fluff only.

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In her living room Sam had a large beige couch, matching love seat and a brown leather recliner. As usual on their team nights Teal'c had arranged the furniture to face the wall where Sam had a large flat screen television mounted. The team had expressed surprise the first time they saw the new television. Sam muttered that it had been a present. When they tried to probe deeper she smiled and ignored them. Later Vala approached her saying "Such large TVs are used to watch sporting events are they not Sam? I don't remember, is ice hockey a sport? Should I ask the guys?" Sam had smiled, shook her head no and holding her finger to her lips whispered shut up.

Teal'c, Rayna and Vala sat on the couch with Rayna in the middle. Mitchell had claimed the recliner leaving the love seat for Sam and Daniel. After they were all comfortably settled in Mitchell yelled.

"No, no. This is all wrong. We can't have all the aliens sitting together. They could be planning our demise, the takeover of earth and the end of life as we know it!" As he spoke Rayna started to write on her tablet. It was obvious from her expression that she knew it was a joke.

Daniel got up and sat on the floor in front of Vala leaning back between her legs. "Does that make you feel better?"

"I'm counting on you to protect us Jackson. Watch out for that old Vulcan mind meld, that never goes out of style."

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Dinner had been fun. Rayna had helped Daniel make the salad intrigued by the different vegetables. Vala had cooked the meat filling and refried beans. While they were chopping and slicing she had Rayna and Daniel take care of the lettuce, onions, tomatoes and peppers for the tacos. Rayna picked up a slice of jalapeño and took a bite before Daniel could stop her. He grimaced as she chewed and swallowed the pepper with no ill effects.

"That was delightful, it reminds me of a small flower we use on my planet to flavor our food."

Vala looked at her. "Not that I'm complaining but your food tasted pretty plain. Was it made that way because we were visitors?"

Rayna laughed. "The people in my home village, which is further downstream, are much better cooks. It would be difficult to translate but there are a number of jokes about how dull the food is in Mya's village."

"How did you end up there?" asked Sam.

"I wanted to be closer to the Well of History. It was worth living in that drab little village, but just barely." Rayna smiled as if to show she was kidding, maybe.

Mitchell was looking at Rayna when she ate the pepper. "You'll like the wings Rayna if you can eat jalapeños like that. In fact, I just might be in love with you, a girl who eats 'real' food is rare."

Rayna was getting used to Cam and his remarks and knew that he was teasing her. In fact most of the items on her list came from him. Rayna noticed that Teal'c glared at Mitchell when he'd said he might be in love with her, which made her smile. She caught Vala's eye and knew that she'd seen Teal's expression.

Rayna thought perhaps Mitchell had also seen Teal'c when he continued his remarks. "What else would make you the perfect girl for me? I like feisty women. Do you think you could kick Sam's ass?"

She looked quickly at Sam's rear. Daniel and Vala both saw where she was looking and catching each others eye they had to choke back laughter. Teal'c was not laughing and SG-1 was trying to pretend that they didn't notice. Vala took pity on the young woman. "He wants to know if you're a fighter. He seems to have forgotten that your people are lovers not fighters."

Mitchell broke in. "I can't believe that your kids don't fight."

"You're correct. The young of all species fight; it's part of their maturing process. But eventually they become civilized."

"You have both sexes and it appears that you procreate naturally, not by cloning like the Azgard. Are you telling me that your adolescents don't fight?"

Rayna laughed. "Of course not. But it is a different type of fighting than the children. Though some have more problems than others making the adjustment. Mya was one of the more difficult girls in her village. She was good at beating up boys from her early years and continued on into her youth. Mya was especially unkind to those who wanted to attract her attention, until she found a boy who didn't. I never cheated to see if he was pretending and neither did Mya. She was a fighter but never a cheat."

"What happened to him? Did they marry? Is he okay with her coming to Earth?"

"They never married, Daniel, he died in an accident. Mya was angry for a long time. She no longer hit people, not physically. But it was a difficult time for her and for those who loved her." Rayna looked apologetic for bringing up such a sad subject. "I expect your people also have a saying about the passage of time allowing pain to diminish. When someone is first hurting it makes them angry, but there is truth in it."

All of SG-1 looked at Daniel. There were tears in Vala's eyes when Daniel put his arm around her and pulled her head to his shoulder. She blinked back the tears and simply rested her head against him.

"Well, Rayna, if you don't fight I'll have to give you up. It breaks my heart but I have standards." Sam punched Mitchell in the stomach. "That's harsh Sam. I'm just telling the truth, I want to let her down easy." He moved out of the way when Sam pulled back her fist to punch him again.

They sat around Sam's kitchen table talking and laughing while they ate Mitchell's wings and little wieners. Vala had never eaten what looked like wormlike creatures wrapped in a type of cover similar to a tortilla. She'd eaten many strange things in her life but was reluctant to take her first bite. Minutes later Mitchell was slapping at her hand as she grabbed for her sixth pig. Rayna had eaten one but didn't seem impressed, though she loved the spicy wings. Teal'c turned his nose up at both saying he preferred to wait for the tacos. Sam had brought out soda and beer. Rayna was interested in trying Earth beer and compare it to the beer of her world. When she started on her second bottle Mitchell said he might have been too hasty and would have to reconsider his decision.

They had soon polished off the wings and pigs. Vala, Daniel and Mitchell kicked Teal'c, Rayna and Sam out of the kitchen. They were setting up a taco assembly line on the counter. Vala heated up the fillings on the stove and put the corn shells in the oven while Daniel and Cam put the other ingredients in small bowls. Mitchell looked into the living room and saw Teal'c and Rayna sitting next to each other on the couch. She had her tablet on her lap and was obviously asking Teal'c about what she'd written down.

"Wait a minute. Why is one alien explaining Earth culture to another alien? Something is just not right with that."

"Mitchell, shut your pie hole. I have to explain things to Daniel all the time. Rayna is trying to understand something, but believe me it isn't Earth slang! So shut up."

Daniel took hold of Mitchell's shoulder and turned him back to the counter. "Trust me; you want to listen to Vala. If you thought Sam hit hard before just wait if you get in the middle of that. Sam will deck you!"

"Hey guys. Chows on!"

"He means dinner is prepared, Rayna. Sometimes Mitchell thinks he's funny though he is the only one laughing."

"Hey Sam, I'm hurt. But as long as I'm cracking myself up that's good enough for me."

Vala gave taco & burrito lessons to Rayna with Daniel and Mitchell critiquing Vala's techniques. When she went to microwave the flour tortillas Daniel could no longer control himself. He grabbed them away from Vala and turned on one of the burners on Sam's gas stove. Taking the tortilla flat in his hands he quickly laid it on the flame turning it around in a circle while it puffed up and browned, by the time he finished the process small sections of the tortilla had charred. Daniel assured them that they were supposed to end up like that. It took about thirty seconds to grill each tortilla and soon they were sitting together at the table eating their tacos, burritos and salad.

SG-1 looked shocked when Vala suggested they take a break and watch the movie before eating the ice cream.

"What? I can take a break from eating can't I? It's not like we aren't going to have popcorn."

Everyone groaned before getting up and moving into the living room. Vala asked Sam for a box of Kleenex before she sat down. Rayna gave her a questioning look and so did Daniel, which made Vala ask. "Who here aside from Rayna, hasn't seen _E.T._?" Sam and Daniel raised their hands. Teal'c, Mitchell and Vala smiled broadly. It was fun to share a favorite movie with friends seeing it for the first time.

Once they were settled in. Mitchell in the chair, Sam alone on the love seat, the aliens on the couch with Daniel on the floor protecting Earth Teal'c used the remote to start playing the DVD.

Right before E.T. died Vala passed the Kleenex box to Rayna after pulling out a handful of tissues for herself. When it appeared that he was dead Teal'c offered the box to Sam. She shook her head no but turned her face away from his view. Vala unobtrusively slipped one to Daniel as she cried into a fistful of Kleenex. When E.T.'s red light shown through the glass Rayna reached for Teal'c arm and smiled when he covered her hand with his.

As the credits rolled Vala jumped up. "Wasn't that great? Sam. Daniel. What did you think?" When they didn't answer immediately she turned to Rayna. "Wasn't that fun? Did you enjoy it? Great choice Muscles."

The group consensus was that it was a great film. While they were discussing it Sam had gone to the kitchen to heat up the fudge sauce. Vala soon followed, put spoons and large bowls on the table. Daniel got napkins out of the cupboard and Teal'c took the ice cream out of the freezer announcing the flavor as he put the containers down. "Vanilla, chocolate chip cookie dough, fudge ripple."

"What! No Cherry Garcia?" Teal'c and Sam gave Mitchell the evil eye at the same time. "Okay. That's fine, what you got is good."

Vala was explaining ice cream and chocolate to Rayna with barely controlled excitement when the doorbell rung. Sam looked surprised and all of SG-1 looked apprehensively at the door.

"Sir! Is there a problem? Everyone's here. We've been introducing Rayna to movies and junk food."

Someone replied but they were unable to recognize the voice. Suddenly Vala yelled "Jack!" and ran towards the door. She and Jack collided as he tried to enter the kitchen and she tried to leave.

"General Landry told me you were all here."


	39. Chapter 39

Rayna noticed how everyone in the room looked at Jack when he entered. The attractive silver haired man was obviously important to all of them. If not as a father then as an older brother to Daniel. Teal'c respected him as a fellow warrior. Mitchell was in awe of the man and hoped for his friendship. But he also worried too much about what Jack thought of him. From Jack she felt only friendship and respect, perhaps Mitchell would in time feel that he deserved it. Vala saw Jack as both a kindred spirit and an integral part of who Daniel was. Rayna didn't need to be an empath to read Sam's feelings.

As Rayna was introduced to Jack she was disturbed by the fear emanating from Vala. Sam was apprehensive but Vala was actually afraid. Rayna shook Jack's hand and he'd just asked her if she was enjoying the evening when Vala grabbed her arm.

"Come with me Rayna." Vala had a concerned look on her face which Rayna couldn't interpret. "I'll show you Sam's bathroom." She smiled and pulled her towards the stairs.

Mitchell yelled at Vala. "Stop. Don't teach her that."

"What? I'm not teaching her anything."

"Yes you are. You're teaching her that Earth thing where women go to the bathroom in groups. It weirds men out and it scares them. We can never figure out what you do together. I swear sometimes I think you hold coven meetings. I'm right aren't I Jack?"

Daniel and Teal'c looked clueless but Jack looked like he'd been put on the spot and didn't appreciate it. But honesty won out. "Yes. Yes, you are."

Sam laughed at his expression. He looked as if he was afraid she'd be angry. "Of course you're right Cam. We don't deny it. Aside from the obvious there are any number of things we do in the bathroom. All the way from checking our hair and make-up to making plans to destroy all the men in the universe."

"I knew it! You guys are frightening when you travel in packs like that."

"Don't be simple, Cam. Rayna, come on." Vala and Rayna walked up the stairs together while Mitchell grumbled. "She's going to ruin that woman. You'd better be careful Teal'c."

Teal'c decided to ignore Mitchell's remark.

Sam had an idea why Vala wanted to talk to Rayna in private and she was grateful. Sam felt that she could trust Rayna but it wouldn't hurt to have a little insurance.

Vala opened the door and the two women walked into the bathroom. "I'm sorry if I embarrassed you Rayna, but I had to speak to you."

"It is funny that men on such different planets still fear it when women gather without them. We don't accompany each other to the bathing room but no woman goes alone to gather flowers. Our men ask us what we talk about and refuse to believe us when we reply 'nothing'. What is it that you wish to share with me? I feel that it is a warning."

Vala sat on the edge of the tub and gestured to Rayna to sit on the toilet. "I'm sure that you can tell about Sam and Jack. It was so obvious to me that I was shocked to discover that they'd been able to hide it from the others for so long. Perhaps years of trying to hide it from themselves taught them well."

"Why must they hide it? Is it like you and Daniel, a surprise not yet revealed to their friends?"

"Nothing so simple. I realize that you have no military on your world but I'm sure you have conventions of behavior that are similar. There is a strict hierarchy in the military. And rules that go along with this. Jack is the military superior to everyone on SG-1, even to civilians like Daniel when on off-world missions. I'm sure you can understand when one person is in charge, they make decisions that affect others they are responsible for all that happens. Such leaders can't make decisions based on the wrong criteria. If Sam is the best person for a job, even if it is dangerous, Jack must send her. Even if he doesn't make decisions based on his love for her it might appear that way to others on the outside. To prevent such things there are strong rules against certain types of involvement between members of such a group. The rule is not just for them it is for everyone in the military where one of the two is in charge of the other. Now that Jack is working in Washington and not at SGC they can finally unite. But..."

"They must be careful and not move too quickly. People might think that Sam was given preferential treatment in the past, because of his feelings for her. I understand how the appearance of impropriety can be almost worse than actual misbehavior. That is not an unusual situation in any society. We don't have a military but there are situations when one person has to have power over others, and it is important that the power is exerted fairly and evenly. We are no better than the people of Earth, Vala. Refusing to kill does not mean we make no mistakes, sometimes equally serious and almost unforgivable mistakes, as any made by the Tau'ri."

"I see that I'll have to fight Cam for you." Vala smiled and Rayna laughed. Vala added. "But I'm not stupid; I know Teal'c's the one that I'd have to fight."

Rayna asked nervously. "Would that cause a problem? Teal'c and me?"

"No, I'm sure not. The two of you are civilians and not bound by military rules. I'm not sure exactly who would have jurisdiction over two aliens anyway."

"So what do you wish me to do about Sam and Jack? Please assure them both that I will never mention it to anyone. And I will make sure that Mya understands. After you and Daniel I realized that love can be complicated in this world." Rayna laughed at herself. "As if it isn't complicated everywhere. Though the complications here seem to be just a little different from ours."

"Okay. Thanks for understanding." As she continued to talk to Rayna she opened the medicine cabinet over the sink and started to root through Sam's makeup. Vala pulled the top off of a lipstick and held it up. "Rayna, do you think I'd look good in this color?"

"Your hair's too dark."

Vala looked in the mirror with the lipstick held next to her face, nodded in agreement and put the lipstick back in the cabinet. She was reaching for a bottle of perfume when she remembered what was going on downstairs.

"Ice cream! Let's go before they eat it all." Vala walked out of the bathroom and headed for the steps.

Rayna had seen the large cartons of what she assumed was "ice cream" and knew that the others couldn't have finished it yet. Vala's concern was an obvious exaggeration but her excitement was infectious.

As the two women entered the kitchen Vala stopped dead in her tracks. The rest of SG-1 and Jack were sitting around the table eating bowls of ice cream but there was no other ice cream in sight. When Vala's face fell in disappointment Daniel got up and opened the freezer pulling out an oversized bowl piled high with ice cream covered with fudge sauce and sprinkled with M&Ms. He took a spoon out of a drawer and handed the bowl and spoon to Vala. She took the bowl with both hands turned and sat it on the table. She then turned back to face Daniel and simply wrapped her arms around him and squeezed. She turned back to the table without saying anything and picked up her dessert. There were two empty chairs around the table, Vala sat in the one next to Mitchell.

"What about Rayna? What kind of people are you?"

While Vala was hugging Daniel Teal'c had opened the freezer and taken out a smaller bowl. "I wasn't sure what you would enjoy so I gave you a variety." He held it out to Rayna.

"Thank you Teal'c. I appreciate your thoughtfulness."

"Did he give you any sprinkles? You need sprinkles or M&Ms or nuts on top. Come on Teal'c you can do better than that, be creative."

Rayna smiled at Teal'c saying "I think it would be best if I started off slowly. Hopefully this will not be my last chance for ice cream?"

It looked as if Vala was going to say something but her mouth was too full of ice cream, so she just smiled and nodded. SG-1 was staring back and forth between Daniel and Vala as she devoured her ice cream. Vala was too engrossed to notice but Daniel began to feel uncomfortable.

"What're you guys looking at? What's so funny?" By this time they were all laughing and didn't even try to keep a straight face.

Mitchell tried to explain but he could talk through his laughter. Sam took pity on Daniel who continued to look concerned. Vala was happy with her ice cream and completely uninterested in anything or anyone else.

"When Vala was in your body one of the things she did was eat."

"Of course, what else would she do?"

"We have the tape we made of her or you or her as you or you as her..." Sam was now laughing so hard she couldn't continue.

Mitchell stepped in. "One of the many things she requested was ice cream with chocolate sauce. And the two of you really enjoyed it. The tape is priceless. Have you seen it Vala?"

"No she hasn't and she doesn't want to." Vala started to correct Daniel but when she looked into his eye she melted along with her ice cream and agreed.

"No that's okay."

It was late when they finished their ice cream and cleaned up Sam's kitchen. Jack hadn't had anything to drink so he drove everyone back to SGC in Mitchell's car. Sam would drive Jack's car back to the base in the morning. Vala smiled to herself, she suspected that Jack would take a taxi back to Sam's. His car would be back at the base in the morning, no one needed to know any more than that.

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Today Mitchell, Daniel and Teal'c were returning to the planet to meet Mya and bring her back to SGC. Daniel thought about getting out of bed but he was much too comfortable. Looking around the room he remembered what he'd to Vala last night. They were settling in to fall asleep with Vala in her usual position her head on his chest and her right hand lying against his cheek.

Daniel pushed her long black hair away from her face. When her head was resting on him it spilled onto his bare chest, often when he looked at her sleeping all he saw was a mass of dark curls. He would gently run his fingers through her hair leaning down to kiss her exposed neck just as he was doing now. "Vala? Are you awake?" Even knowing how stupid it was to ask that question it made him feel like a normal couple. She lifted her head up, opened one eye and made a sound that could just barely be interpreted as yes. "I don't think I told you how much I like this room. The brass bed is great but most of all I love the Beardsley prints on the wall. And I love that your friends did this for you."

"For us, darling."

"No, Vala. They did it for you. It shows how well they know you. In fact, I'm jealous that they know you so well. The bed, the tree, the lights are you but so are the prints. You're both the Lady of the Lake and the Energizer Bunny."

Vala smiled and laid her head back down on Daniel's chest and her hand on his cheek. When she fell asleep that hand would slip down to his shoulder and her head would slip off of his chest as she curled up on her left side leaning against him. Once asleep she rarely moved unless she had a nightmare. Then she would start to moan and thrash around her arms and legs moving wildly. Sometimes she would yell for help or cry out in pain. The first few times he had tried to comfort her, taking her in his arms and whispering that everything would be okay that he was there for her. But when he got close she would pull back as if in fear of physical pain and didn't react to his voice. At first he felt rejected but realized that was a selfish reaction. Her nightmares had nothing to do with him beyond his hope that sharing their lives might lessen their frequency. When she dreamed he would watch her in case she somehow hurt herself. When she first woke from her dreams Vala would stop all movement and sound remaining perfectly still. Daniel would turn over on his side with his back to her. He would pretend to be asleep while she composed herself. Vala knew that Daniel was awake and that he knew that she knew. He was allowing her emotional space and privacy. Some nights, though not many, she would be able to go back to sleep. Usually she would gently kiss Daniel somewhere on the back of his head often it turned out to be his ear. He knew that meant she would be getting up and start prowling the hallways. Some nights she would go to the gym, or their office, maybe to the infirmary to bother the staff. Depending on the time of night she might catch Landry finishing up paperwork and visit him. Sam or Bill Lee might be in their labs working; she would check on them and talk them into going to the Commissary with her. Because no matter where she went, what she did or who she saw Vala ended up eating. He knew that those nights when the nightmares were particularly bad she would eat first thing and return for another snack before calling it a night.

Daniel didn't really have nightmares, but he did dream, intense dreams involving the people he had lost throughout his life. He would wake and depression would begin to overcome him. The only remedy he knew was to immerse himself in work. Daniel didn't cry out or even move his body during these dreams, but once he was awake he was never able to fall back asleep. The first nights it happened he tried to move out of their bed as quietly as possible. On the third night he almost screamed when Vala spoke in her normal tone and volume saying that she was awake and there wasn't any need for him to be quiet. Daniel felt guilty and tried to apologize but she stopped him, telling him that everyone had demons and their own ways of handling them. Vala explained that it would actually be less disturbing if he would get out of bed like normal, just get dressed and go to work. If she needed him she knew where to find him.

And some nights they did meet ending the night together in the Commissary, sitting side by side drinking coffee and eating.

Last night there were no nightmares and no guilt ridden dreams, both of them slept through the night and didn't wake until the alarm went off. Vala was instantly wide awake and Daniel rolled over pulling the pillow over his head to drown out the buzzing. He was muttering instructions to Vala on how to kill the damn thing but she couldn't hear him through his pillow. But she knew what he was saying and ignoring him she leapt out of bed and raced to the bathroom. Vala was always excited about breakfast but today Rayna, Teal'c, Daniel and Mitchell were headed off-world to bring back Mya.

Dressed in jeans and a tight pink tee-shirt that didn't reach her waist Vala pulled the pillow off his face and shook him. "Daniel! Time to get up. Wakey, wakey, rise and shine." The last was sung in a high pitched voice. Daniel cursed Mitchell for teaching her all about the summer camp experience. S'mores were good, but campfire songs and other repetitious ditties could be a pain. Mitchell said he didn't appreciate them because he'd never gone to camp and had no fond memories to relive.

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It was an hour after breakfast SG-1 and Rayna were in Daniel's workroom discussing the mission. Rayna was wearing black BDUs, while not as form-fitting as Vala's it looked as if Rose or one of her staff had done some tailoring. Sam was wearing a lab coat over her shirt, she planned on working on the physics involved in the phase shifting Rayna had demonstrated to her the day before.

Daniel and Vala were fighting over the photographs in a folder on his desk. Mitchell was fully dressed and looked impatiently at the rest of the team. Teal'c was helping Rayna with her jacket when Jack knocked on the door jamb.

"Hey guys. What's up? Headed off world I see. I assume that she's staying home." He stared at Vala's outfit or actually at her midriff. Daniel had looked up to say good morning and noticed where he was looking.

Smiling Daniel said. "Good morning, Jack." At the same time he took hold of Vala's shirt and pulled it down closer to her pants. Daniel knew Jack was goofing around trying to tease him. And he enjoyed seeing Jack attempt to figure out if he was trying to tease him back.

"What the hell are you doing darling?" Vala looked confused and slapped his hands away from her shirt. 'Are you trying to distract me so you can get the file? No way. You're headed back to the ruin today. Bring back your own set of pictures."

"So, I hear you're going to bring back another sexy alien babe? That makes three for you Daniel. Mitchell you are letting down all the Captain Kirks everywhere. What's wrong?"

Mitchell looked shocked and then panicked when Teal'c said. "I think that it is a medical condition, Jack O'Neil."

Her hand in front of her face Vala loudly coughed "Lam."

Jack smiled in comprehension. "Does Landry …."

Mitchell tried to take control of the conversation. "Let's get going. We don't want to keep the people waiting."

Teal'c took Rayna by the arm and Daniel leaned over to kiss Vala goodbye. She lifted her cheek up for his kiss without taking her eyes off one of the photographs.

Now it was Jack's turn to look shocked. "Daniel, you are really in trouble. Either that one doesn't care if you go off with one beautiful space blonde on your way to pick up yet another one, which is sad because you love her. Or she is so sure of you that she didn't even think twice about it. Whichever it is you are definitely down for the count, Danny boy."

As the four travelers left the room Vala looked at Jack as if she'd just heard what he said to Daniel. Her eyes narrowed and he pretended to be scared until she gave him one of her full on Cheshire Cat grins.

Vala sat down at the desk and opened another file folder. "Jack, you know the Nox. Do you think these people might have been Nox at one time?"

"You've been studying them what do you think?"

"I'm not crazy about Rayna's people's style sense. But I don't see them sticking twigs in their hair and rolling around on the ground as a fashion statement."

"Why don't you just talk with the Nox?"

"I'd like to. Everyone says they aren't too interested in spending time with us. They also say if they'll respond to anyone it'd be you. So what do you say? Can you get me an audience with their fearless leader?"

Frowning at her Earth culture reference Jack replied. "I'll try my best. I think they'll be intrigued by your de-ascended Nox theory."


	40. Chapter 40

Rayna and Mya were in the room now considered 'my lab' by both Vala and Daniel while the rest of SGC used the descriptors 'Vala's lab' and 'Daniel's lab' interchangeably. Mya had been at SGC for ten days, spending half of her time with Thomas, Jason and Dr. Lee and the other with Sam hoping to discover how her people were able to transport themselves over distances and shift themselves slightly out of phase. It was possible to see a shimmering outline of a person when they decided to do what her people called 'hiding'. While they hid they remained in place, it was a separate and different action from transporting. Sam's current theory was that the transporting involved telekinesis and was a natural function while the shimmering was a technological effect. The neurologists and paranormal experts would have to work on the teleporting, leaving Sam to investigate how phase technology could work without a user's awareness. Though she and Cameron didn't understand how they were shifted out of phase by Arthur's Mantle shifting back required knowledge and physical action on their part. Mya's people shimmered back and forth with no concept of how they did so.

Rayna was packing a box with documents and photographs from the Well of History. She and Mya had been assigned their own workroom. In return for Mya's help with both Thomas and Sam's projects Rayna was now free to concentrate her studies on the mystery of her people's origins. Vala and Daniel, with Landry's permission, were allowed to help her when they had time.

Vala had been intrigued by the Nox and was thrilled when they agreed to meet with her and Rayna. Jack sat in on their debriefing and had laughed at their responses to the Nox.

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Jack started off. "Well, girls. How'd it go with our friends the Nox? Are they ready to claim you as their long lost kin?" Sam scowled at Jack giving him the proverbial evil eye.

"What? What'd I say?" Jack responded with a look of innocent outrage.

Rayna looked at Vala, who explained. "Sam thinks it's demeaning for Jack to call us 'girls'. Which it is. We are quite definitely adult women. But I don't care. I adore Jack and I know he only says it to upset Sam. Jack likes it when her eyes flash at him like that."

Sam looked even more outraged so Rayna started to talk. "I'm not exactly sure how they feel about the idea that we are re-ascended Nox. It was challenging to discuss such matters with them. I'm not sure how to describe …"

Vala broke in. "How about condescending, supercilious, self-important sons of bitches? Who dress like, I don't know, Pigpen in the Peanuts comics if he'd shoved twigs into his hair after rolling around in the dirt."

Jack smiled and Sam gave a slight nod to Vala.

"But we're not giving up. They gave Vala some files and she's going to integrate them into the data base she designed for the information uncovered at the Well of History. I'll attempt to devise a searching algorithm that we can use as a basis for our research. The Nox actually encouraged us to contact them if we had questions or wanted to discuss additional or alternative theories. I didn't mean to be critical of the Nox. They are impervious to my empath abilities so I am judging them only on their apparent attitude."

"Apparent my ass!" snorted Vala.

"Actually one of the older men really liked Vala. He was almost drooling every time he talked to her. I know they pride themselves on being in tune with "nature" and I have a good idea what part of Vala's "nature" he wanted to be in tune with." Rayna laughed at the shocked expression on Jack's face. He hadn't spent much time with Rayna and seemed to be unsure if she was being funny or not. Rayna looked over and saw the expression of disgust on Vala's face. When Vala didn't say anything Rayna said to Jack. "You'll notice that Vala doesn't have any answer to that." This time Jack smiled

Daniel walked in and heard Rayna's last sentence. "What could you have possibly said? Vala doesn't have an answer? That seems highly unlikely." As he spoke Daniel walked over to stand behind Vala's chair and put his hands on her shoulders. He was surprised when she didn't turn her head but continued to look at Jack.

"That's not important Jack. We'll continue to work with Rayna and hopefully we'll come up with some answers in time."

Jack looked at Daniel and laughed. "It seems your little space muffin has made an impression on some dirty old Nox. He wasn't able to resist her charm."

"Vala?"

"Daniel, I'm innocent I swear. Ask Rayna, the creepy little gnome kept trying to paw me. I didn't even smile at him; in fact I almost knocked him on the ground at one point. I promise you Daniel, I never…"

Rayna broke in to defend Vala. "She's right Daniel. Vala didn't do anything wrong. I think the other Nox were embarrassed by his behavior. In fact that might be why they ended up offering to help, they were much more accommodating after he grabbed her ass. In fact his obsession with her was probably a stroke of good fortune for us"

Daniel looked taken aback. "The Nox?"

"Daniel, surely you can appreciate that even highly evolved and advanced races have failings. The gentleman was quite old; perhaps there is an affliction among older Nox that, after time, they can no longer heal."

Jack smiled at Rayna and added. "Or they have their own share of evolved, but perverted, old men."

Sam frowned as she looked at Rayna and Jack. "I used to worry that Vala and Jack would be a bad influence on each other. But I'm beginning to think that you, Rayna, will turn out to be much worse."

Rayna and Jack put on identical expressions of disbelief and at the exact same time said. "What do you mean Sam?" At which point Sam started to laugh, Daniel looked confused and Vala insulted.

"I think I should be upset that you thought I might be a bed influence. But I'm more upset that you think Rayna will be worse! See Daniel, I try to better myself and all it gets me is disrespect from my fellow team members." Vala was only able to hold her pout for ten seconds before laughing.

Using a stage whisper Jack said to Sam. I think you're right. She would be good for Teal'c. Shake him up a little bit." He looked at Rayna to gauge her reaction to his comment.

Rayna smiled saying. "You betcha!"

Sam jumped in saying. "Indeed."

Daniel looked even more confused while the rest of them started to giggle. Jack sobered up long enough to tell Sam. "I just might have to fight Teal'c for this woman."

"Isn't this the debriefing for their visit to the Nox?"

Through her laughter Sam told him. "Get with the program Daniel. You're the one who showed up late."

Vala added. "Yes, darling. I think you Tau'ri have a quaint little saying. You snooze, you lose."

Daniel turned and left the room muttering something about childish behavior as the four of them started to laugh all over again.

Suddenly Vala sat up straight with a look of panic. "Oh my God. Do you think Daniel's angry at me? I didn't mean to tease him like that. It was your fault Sam with your 'get with the program' crack. Maybe you're the bad influence here."

That made them all start laughing again. Walter stuck his head in the door to see what was going on, which made them laugh even harder. He shook his head in disbelief when he saw Sam doubled over laughing and quietly closed the door before going back to his desk.

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Vala stood at the door and saw Daniel working at his desk. He looked up at her and gestured for her to come in standing up as she got close. He pulled her into his arms and hugged her. "It was great to hear Sam laugh like that. Jack, too. He jokes around a lot but this was full out laughing. And when Rayna said 'you betcha' I thought he was going to completely lose it. Then Sam saying 'indeed' almost made him choke."

Vala snuggled up against Daniel's. He wasn't upset by her teasing. She doubted if he could even remember what she'd said. He was happy for his friends and glad that they were able to share some laughter. He had actually helped by playing the confused geek and butt of the joke. Vala had wondered before if he had developed that persona so he could use it to defuse tension within the group.

Daniel pulled back out of embrace and turned towards the desk. He opened the bottom drawer on the right side of the desk and pulled out a paper bag. He took Vala's right hand turning it palm up. After he put the bag in her hand she gave him a wide grin and tore it open. She pulled out a bag of M&Ms, a Snickers bar, an apple, an orange and a peanut butter granola bar.

"What's this for, Daniel?"

"We're meeting everybody for lunch in two hours but I thought you might want a snack."

Vala nodded her thanks and took a bite out of the apple. Daniel took her by the elbow and headed towards the door.

"Where are we going? Don't we have work to do here?"

"I think I'm getting old and boring."

"What the hell do you mean by that? Why are you in such a hurry darling" He was pulling her along to the door.

"The only place in here without cameras is the supply closet."

"So?"

"I just find sex with you." He held his hand up to stop her from talking. "Fantastic as it is anywhere and anytime, to be more fun in our bed. Remember, there's no good place in the closet to attach the handcuffs."

Vala grinned at him as they ran out into the hall. "Come along, move it, don't dawdle. You said two hours, right?" She couldn't believe how thrilling it was to hear Daniel say 'our bed'.

She continued to attack the apple with her teeth. She was now dragging Daniel behind her. Once in the hall they let go of each other's hand and slowed to a walk. Daniel put his hands in his pockets making an attempt to appear nonchalant. Though they didn't pass anyone in the hall they considered it good practice, it was part of an unspoken agreement. Daniel was embarrassed by public displays of lust and Vala couldn't think of any reason to embarrass him. He loved her and wasn't embarrassed to let everyone know it. Vala really couldn't care less what anyone did or didn't know about their sex life. However, Daniel did care and she was happy to honor his wishes. If he felt more comfortable acting what he thought was low keyed that was fine. She wasn't going to be the one to break it to him that his attempts were transparent to most people at SGC.

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Mitchell sat at a table in the Commissary with Sam and Jack. "Where's Vala? She never misses a meal. Unless..."

"Unless what?" asked Jack.

Sam leaned over and whispered something in Jack's ear.

"Good for him. Go for it, Danny boy."

Teal'c and Rayna approached the table with their trays. Mitchell stood up and pulled out the chair for Rayna.

Sam looked offended. "No one ever pulls out a chair for me."

Before Mitchell could return to his seat Jack looked at Rayna and then at Sam. "She must be a lot prettier than you, Sam."

Rayna laughed as Mitchell turned bright red and Teal'c raised an eyebrow at Jack.

"Indeed!"

Sam motioned to Mitchell to sit down. "Don't pay any attention to him. I was just kidding." She turned to Jack and in a stage whisper asked "Prettier than me, flyboy?"

Vala and Daniel walked in to the Commissary and stopped right inside the door. Mitchell saw them stop, Vala staring intently into Daniel's eyes. She put her left hand on his shoulder, as she started to speak she gestured excitedly with her right hand. Vala appeared to be asking him a serious question and nervously waiting for his answer.

"Look at those two. I don't even want to think about what she's asking him." As soon as he said it Mitchell had to amend his statement. "Though, maybe I do. It could prove instructive."

Sam reached over and punched him in the shoulder. "Shut up!"

Jack added. "What she said."

Rayna stopped drinking her iced tea. "I'm assuming that you are making a sexual reference, Colonel Mitchell." He turned red and stuttered a denial.

Rayna laughed. "I didn't mean to embarrass you. It can be a little disturbing, as an empath I have to remember to guard myself when ever I get close to them. I swear sometimes I can feel them from two floors away. So you can believe me when I tell you that they're not, for once, thinking about their sex life. You, actually all of us, should try to be understanding. This relationship is an amazing experience for both of them. Even the idea of being in a relationship is amazing to them. Perhaps we all need to do what I think you Tau'ri call 'lighten up' and 'cut them a break'. And maybe 'get a life'. Those are appropriate sentiments aren't they?"

Jack nodded in agreement. "Yes they are Rayna. Very appropriate. Mitchell I hereby order you to 'get a life.'"

Sam was unable to resist adding. "Maybe you should take Dr. Lam along with you."

Mitchell turned even redder, looking at Sam as if pleading for her to stop.

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Vala put her hand on his shoulder and pulled Daniel to the side as they entered the Commissary. "Daniel, I need to talk to you. I need to know how you feel about…"

Daniel couldn't help a rising feeling of panic as he tried to imagine what she going to say. After the past two hours together he wasn't afraid that she was going to say she didn't love him, try to break up with him, confess some awful indiscretion or anything similar. She was so serious it was frightening but he had no choice but to try and control his feeling of dread and listen to her.

Vala felt his whole body tense up as she spoke but couldn't think of any reason for his reaction, so she continued.

"Sorry, I should start at the beginning. I've mentioned my friend Peter before …."

Daniel smiled and his muscles relaxed. "The wonderful man who got us our bed, right?" He had no idea where she was going but the mention of the bed seemed a good omen.

"That's him. Well he came up with another idea, but Peter insists that I ask your permission. The bed was for my room, this would be for your room."

Daniel nodded for her to go on.

"Peter would like to make some changes in your bedroom. He doesn't want you to feel that he is trying to interfere in our lives, but his plans are great. At least I think they are, and I think you will too. Peter's worried that you'll think he's being what he called 'pushy' and that my friends are trying to influence our relationship." Vala was biting her lower lip as she tried to explain to Daniel. She looked so concerned and anxious he couldn't imagine what these plans could entail.

"Come on dear. Just spit it out. How bad could it be?"

"Peter thinks we should empty your room, remove all the furniture and turn it into a library, our own private library. He has some catalogs to show you, there's something called moveable compact shelving. I'm not at all sure that I'm describing it correctly; you'll have to look at the pictures. It looks like a wall made of book shelves that are all squished together. The book shelves are on tracks and each section can move apart to create an aisle. There aren't permanent spaces between the shelves; they are moved to open an aisle when you need it. Obviously it takes up a lot less floor space for amount of available shelf space. They're not just for books, there's a museum in Florida that has them for their butterfly collection. He showed me special artefact cabinets that museums use."

"I've seen that type of shelves before in libraries and archives. I'd love to see the catalogs. What else does he want to do?" Daniel leaned in and whispered in her ear. "You can assume that I'm crazy about the idea of our own library."

"He has some sketches he'd like to show you. Your room isn't huge but with the compact shelving he thinks we can fit in what he calls a traditional library table. I saw a picture and they had the cutest little lamps. Peter said to tell you to think of a cross between the British Museum and the New York Public Library reading rooms. It's so exciting Daniel. He found this photocopier that's designed to copy books without having to squash them down on the glass." Vala jumped a few inches off the floor with every other word.

Daniel looked at her excited face and smiled. He teased her saying "I've officially turned you into a book geek. I'm so proud"

"There's also a corner in the back where they won't be able to mount a security camera. Peter says that I can pick out the furniture. He tried to explain to me about some kind of a chair, a bag of beans maybe? No matter, I'm confident that I'll find something comfortable. Now you look excited darling. Just what kind of a geek am I turning you into?"

Daniel looked like he was seriously contemplating pushing her up against the wall of the Commissary. Vala shook his shoulder. "Come on. I need food! Peter's meeting us after dinner in his office."

They walked over to the food line and Vala waved at their friends indicating they'd be joining them in a few minutes.

Mitchell had looked cross-eyed at Rayna right before they broke apart and headed for the food.

"Okay. Things got a little intense there at the end. Especially on Daniel's part. But there's a definitely non-sexual passion involved."

Daniel was smiled broadly at everyone when he sat. 'You'll never guess what we're going to do in my bedroom."

Jack said. "Do we even want to try and guess?"

Daniel looked confused and then pissed when he realized what he had said but continued on. "We're going to turn it into our own library."

Rayna and Sam laughed when Jack and Mitchell said at the same time. "Jesus Christ, Daniel!"

Teal'c limited himself to a classic eyebrow raise and one word response. "Indeed."

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Mya and Rayna had joined SG-1 for lunch. Jack had returned to Washington leaving Sam strict orders to keep him apprised of all the latest juicy gossip.

Sam worked with Mya, Rayna lived with her, Vala, Daniel and Teal'c talked to Rayna about Mya leaving Mitchell the only one asking basic questions.

"So Mya, how's it going here at SGC? Enjoying yourself? I hope the headshrinkers aren't working you too hard."

Rayna had passed her Earth vocabulary notebook and pencil on to Mya. She dutifully wrote down 'head shrinking' as she answered Mitchell. "Everything is going extremely well. Thank you for asking me Colonel. I am enjoying myself. I went to Washington with Thomas a few days ago and met with the 'First Lady'. She is quite interested in our project."

Vala protested. "They took you to Washington and let you loose with important government people? They only let me meet behind closed doors with bureaucrats who knew I was an alien."

Mya looked surprised by Vala's outburst. She was at a loss how to reply when Rayna stepped in.

"I'm sure that it had nothing to do with you being an alien. They may have felt they couldn't trust you to behave properly."

Vala tried to look indignant but was unsuccessful.

"And I think they may have been correct. You appear to enjoy what I think is called 'jerking people's chains' or 'pushing their buttons'. I suspect that you were the same way as a child. Being an alien isn't an excuse for someone's personality."

Vala looked around the room refusing to look at any of her team. They were enjoying Rayna's insights way too much for her liking

"Washington was exciting. Jack took us out for dinner one night and ordered his aide, Philip, to take us to a Karaoke Bar afterwards once Jack left. Thomas, Philip and I drank a lot of beer and hummed along to the songs. Thomas had been displeased when Jack arranged for the visit but after an hour he called Jason on his cell to tell him what a good time he was having. He insisted that he was not, in fact, 'blotto'. Jason asked to speak to me to verify it, which I did. Thomas was not drunk, he was just having what he called 'a good time'. Jason seemed very happy to hear it and told me that he would debrief me the minute we returned to SGC."

"It sounds as if the therapist training project is going well."

"Yes, we will be releasing a detailed report within three weeks. I think the conclusion will be positive and the recommendation that we continue will be confirmed. I wish that my work with Sam was going as well."

"Don't worry Mya. We didn't expect to see immediate results. I'm willing to predict that we will achieve at least a small breakthrough in the physics underlying the shimmering sometime in the next six months. That may sound slow but the prize is great, any success no matter how slight will have great significance."

"Well the shimmering is nice, Mya, but I really want to try that teleporting thingy you guys do."

"I'm sorry Colonel but it appears to be a matter of physiology."

Teal'c asked Mya. "Are you then glad that you left your home to work with us at SGC?"

Rayna laughed. "Glad! I'd say ecstatic. Mya was never interested in studying history but she's always been interested in studying how to get off planet."

All of SG-1 looked at Mya to see how she was reacting to Rayna's words.

"Well, I did always want to go as close to the edge as possible when on a cliff. I always wanted to be the one who could teleport the farthest. I always bothered the few travelers we saw for stories from other worlds. Of course, meeting the Priors almost convinced me to rethink leaving home."

"Mya would like to be a peaceful explorer traveling to other worlds. Myself I just want to be able to use my mind, to study history, to increase my knowledge and other what you call 'geeky' interests. As Mitchell determined before I'm not a warrior and not just because I was raise as a pacifist. I have no desire to learn such skills." Looking at Daniel she continued. "I would like to learn a few more languages though."

Teal'c looked at Rayna closely saying. "There is much of value in the life of a scholar. We warriors fight so that people like you and Daniel Jackson can work to help us understand our lives."

Vala spoke in a conspiratorial whisper. "Take it from me Teal'c. It might not look as if these intellectual types possess much physical skill. But its always the quiet ones that surprise you. As the warrior in my own relationship let me assure you that the sex…"

Daniel put his hand over her mouth and cut her off. Teal'c looked at Vala and then at Rayna. Looking back at Vala he said. "Indeed. Perhaps, Vala Mal Duran, it would be wise if I were to investigate the validity of your claim." He stood up helped Rayna out of her chair and the two of them walked out of the Commissary without a backward glance.

Sam, Daniel and Mitchell were stunned. Vala and Mya exchanged smiles and gave each other thumbs up. Sam was already trying to thinking how she would tell Jack about this development. She was afraid that when he answered the phone tonight she would be laughing so hard imagining his reaction that she wouldn't be able to say anything at all.

Vala and Daniel got up and left. Daniel saying. "Well, we're off. Lots of non-warrior geek stuff to do. See you guys."

Vala whispered to Sam. "Give Jack my love. And let me know exactly what he says about this, every word."

Mitchell was sitting with his head in his hands. "What the hell is going on? I feel like the SG-1 world is collapsing around me. Is this the end, Sam?"

"I don't want to sound like Pollyanna but I think the best is yet to come. And these are certainly interesting times, my friend."

Sam left leaving Mitchell groaning with his head still in his hands.


	41. Chapter 41

Alarms were sounding, lights flashing and "unscheduled off-world activation" was blaring from the speakers. The iris was opened in response to the SG-1 ID code and three figures burst through the gate followed by a hail of weapons fire. The iris was closed before they reached the end of the ramp.

"What the hell happened?" Landry's voice came over the control room' speakers.

"Just a little misunderstanding, Sir. Debriefing in thirty minutes as soon as we're finished with medical checks, Sir?"

"Fine Colonel Mitchell. I'll ask Teal'c and Colonel Carter to join us."

Mitchell saluted the general and headed out of the gate room. Vala hadn't said a word before she strode out of the room behind Mitchell heading for the Infirmary. Daniel shook his head in disgust and walked slowly through the door. Vala sped up and tried to move around in front of Mitchell. He stopped and let her get past before calling out her name. "Vala. Come on. Calm down."

Vala turned to face him and punched him in the chest. "So? What? You're on his side?"

"Vala. It isn't a matter of sides. It's a matter of different approaches to alien cultures. Don't give me that look. You know what I mean by alien."

They found themselves outside of the infirmary and went in for the standard routine medical check-up. Vala headed to the cubicle furthest from the door wanting to avoid Cameron and Daniel. There was a back entrance nearby which she used immediately after the nurse finished her examination. She headed towards their bedroom but decided to go to the library instead. She hoped that Daniel would go to their office. Vala wasn't sure if he would try and find her but her plan was to stay out of his way until the briefing. If she even attended the debriefing, at the moment she was certainly in no mood. But either Mitchell or Landry would insist she be there, sending someone after her if need be. She went into the Library and locked the door behind her, something they never did. Once inside she leaned back against the inside of the door and bit her bottom lip to keep from crying. It didn't help and she went into their corner and threw herself onto the bean bag chair and let the tears pour down her face.

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Sam was waiting outside when Mitchell left the Infirmary. Daniel was still inside. She asked Mitchell "What happened? It was only a brief recon mission, just a quick check to see if any Priors were hanging around the planet. Why's Vala crying and Daniel pouting?"

"Let's go to your office."

Sam sat at her desk and watched Mitchell pace across the room. He would look up and start to speak, shake his head and look down again.

"I know that everyone pretty much loves Daniel, and thinks he walks on water." He held up his hand and stopped Sam from saying a word. "I don't mean anything bad; it's just the SG-1 dynamic. Though I have to admit it intimidates me when I disagree with him."

"Spit it out, flyboy." Sam intended to make him laugh, which he did.

"I'm sure you remember the Mongol planet and how they treated their women."

"Yeah. The 'boys' thought it was hysterical that they forced me to wear that dress, until I was kidnapped and sold to the, oh so charming, Turghan." Though she smiled Mitchell could tell the memories made her angry.

"I bet you weren't real crazy about the 'dress and live like the people you study' routine. Especially the high priority given to the whole 'avoid cultural misunderstanding and consider cultural differences before you judge' deal. The 'prime directive' so to speak. Not so high minded a concept when you're the one being sold."

"Okay. Why bring up all that past history. What's it got to do with Vala and Daniel?"

"I just wanted to refresh your memory of Daniel's anthropologist's approach to other cultures. Okay, I'm getting to it." Sam stood up and grabbed him by the arm and stopped his pacing. She put her hands on his shoulders and pushed him down onto the chair next to her desk.

"I think maybe Vala didn't give him enough time, he was entranced by so much of the culture that he was reluctant to admit they had any major flaws. He pretty much summarily dismissed her concerns when she first expressed them."

"Mitchell, what happened?"

"She was right and he was wrong. There is simply no question about it." Sam's impatience was palpable.

He took a deep breath and started. "When we first got there everything was very pleasant. There was no overt abuse of the women. They didn't appear to hold positions of power but that's not uncommon. After a while you noticed that the women were quiet and respectful at all times and they did all the fetching and carrying. When we went to our quarters it was a woman who carried our bags. When we protested and tried to carry them ourselves she looked frightened and pleaded with her eyes to let her. I really don't think Daniel noticed it. Vala and I exchanged looks but we talked about it later and decided that it could've been that she was simply a servant with a strict master. We both planned on keeping an eye out. I'm not sure if Vala mentioned our concerns to Daniel privately or not. It's an agricultural society and rigid gender divisions aren't unusual in farming communities."

"I think I've got the background Mitchell, go on."

"I could understand the appeal of the Little House on the Prairie meets Mayberry R.F.D. scene. It might not be my choice of life style, but. Men work the fields, woman cook, clean and have children. Nothing very exotic. Then Vala comes to me and drags me to talk to one of the women in the kitchen. For some reason they had been talking about children, which isn't the first topic of conversation I would expect to interest Vala. It turns out that as in many agrarian societies boys are prized above girls, they are cheap labor, carry on the family name, inherit property and you don't have to come up with a wedding gift when they marry. Now I know it's not an unusual situation. And I also knew to expect that the women accepted it and even agreed with the logic."

"I know. Sometimes it takes a lot for a subjugated group to even consider that their position in society should be challenged. So the women are unhappy with their lives? I don't mean to be flippant but are their lives so bad? We make fun of the 'prime directive' but when we travel to other worlds we have to accept that we'll run into planets whose culture we may find unpleasant. Do you and Vala really believe that Daniel is wrong to think that we have no right to dictate how other cultures live? That many of Earth's cultures are hardly without sin and do we don't the right to challenge their chosen way of life?"

Mitchell didn't answer her questions. After a few minutes he looked Sam in the eyes and said. "They are extremely serious about their desire for more male children than female. The head of the community decides on the percentage and when the ratio is threatened the, I suppose you could call them 'excess', girls are sold off-world."

Sam gasped; she was incredulous and couldn't believe it. Mitchell continued. "So you can imagine why pregnant women might cry especially as they approach the birth. That's how Vala got involved; a woman in the kitchen went into labor. She wasn't surprised when the mother started to cry and scream, but she was shocked at the behavior of the others. Two older women were helping with the birth process but with depressed looks on their faces, the three younger women were all crying. Suddenly one began to scream and fell to her knees rocking back and forth in apparent agony. Vala told me she'd thought that their medical care was so primitive that birth often resulted in the death of the mother. She asked one of the older women who gave her a questioning look and told her that it was rare that a woman didn't survive childbirth, but that the fear of having a girl made for an unpleasant experience for all the women not just the mother. That's when they explained about the fate of many girls."

Sam was almost crying herself when Mitchell put his hand on her arm. "It gets worse, Sam." She looked at him and saw that he was trying to hold back tears and was frightened by what he might say.

"The head man, of course it's a man, worries about possible problems that might shift the percentages, children die, accidents happen, they miscalculate and sell too many or too few girls. Even the women don't talk about the mothers who walk off cliffs or disappear into the forest when their babies are taken. It's considered an act of bravery, one less woman means another girl is saved. Their leaders have come up with quite an interesting solution. We hadn't noticed but the women explained that girls are kept separate from the community until they are three years old, spending all their time with women. When they're three years old they are allowed to become a part of society. They are given names and their third birthday is considered their first birthday. Basically their lives begin at three."

"Why?" Sam felt Mitchell's hand tremble as he answered.

"They can be taken from their mothers and sold anytime between birth and three years old. The elders feel that it is easier if no one becomes attached to the children until they know they will be staying."

"No one becomes attached? How could that be?"

"What it means is that no men become attached. At one time boys under three were allowed to interact with the girls, but when some of the boys questioned what happened to their sisters and friends it was decided to keep all males away for those first three years."

A tear ran down Mitchell's face. "The women on that world are not abused, they are broken."

At first Sam didn't know what to say to him, "What about Daniel? He knew about this? He thinks we should accept the situation, overlook their behavior and respect their culture?"

"At one period in my life I was raised on my grandparent's farm and after my father left the Air Force my parents retired to a small farm. I loved all the time I spent there but life on a farm and the people who live and work on farms are no worse but certainly no better than anyone else. I've found that a lot of what we hicks call 'city folk' have an unrealistic view of rural life. A romantic illusion that those who work with their hands close to nature are somehow 'better' people. That hard work by itself is ennobling. I've done my share of it and let me tell you that hard work is just hard work. Some of those folks act as if they believe simply living that type of life style would make people kinder, gentler even purer. Maybe Daniel had that in the back of his mind; he certainly seemed taken by the place."

"Mitchell are you absolutely certain Daniel knew about this? Did you talk to him yourself?"

"No. Vala talked to him."

"Do you know exactly what they said?"

Mitchell looked as if he was trying to remember. "Things were getting heated between the two of them before Vala spoke to the women. Daniel knew she felt the women were repressed and she might've made a crack or ten about it. In fact she may have made a crack about the rarely mentioned Sha're given to Daniel episode."

"Often a sticky topic. I admit we don't usually go there. Though I happen to know that Vala's convinced Sha're decided she wanted Daniel and pretty much coerced her father into the whole give the pretty native girl to the stranger who saved the tribe routine."

"Once we pieced together the whole story we went together to speak to Daniel. I don't think that I said anything at all. Both Vala and I were pretty upset and she might've been a little incoherent. She was trying to explain but the more she talked the more distressed she became and I wouldn't be surprised if he didn't grasp many of the details. He certainly wasn't responding the way either of us expected. After the third or fourth time Daniel asked if she was sure she'd understood what the women were telling her and suggested that she might be confused about the actual situation Vala gave up. She told him to talk to his friend the head of the village and when he explained about the baby girls he should come back and talk. Before he left Daniel asked Vala what was with her sudden interest in babies. I thought she was going to haul off and deck him but all she did was mutter something about losing freedom and families. I'm not sure if he heard her or even if she meant for him to hear."

"We arranged to meet at the Gate, we were going to confirm our plans, contact SGC and schedule our return. Vala and I were packed and waiting. As far as we were concerned we needed to leave immediately and bring the issue to Landry. Daniel and Zhan, the head of the settlement, walked up engrossed in their conversation. Vala crossed her arms and taping her foot asked Daniel if Zhan had explained everything to his satisfaction. Daniel's reply, and I was there I can confirm it, was yes. That he, Daniel, understood the needs of their type of society and that we had to be willing to accept their rights to continue life as they had throughout the ages. I have to admit that my jaw dropped and I was flabbergasted. Vala didn't hesitate for a second; she walked over to Daniel and slapped him then turned to Zhan and sucker punched him in the stomach. She looked at me and nodded towards the Gate. I dialed out as Zhan's entourage started to shoot, when the firing began I pushed Daniel towards the Gate and the three of us came home."

"I'm sorry, Mitchell. I don't doubt what you heard. It just doesn't sound like Daniel. I agree he lives in his own type of ivory tower at times, but …"

"I'm hoping the debriefing will shed some light on the whole mess." Looking at his watch he asked Sam. "Its almost time, would you try and find Vala and bring her with you to the briefing room? I'd really appreciate it. Thanks." He left Sam's office happy that he didn't have to face Vala. It was difficult enough to explain to Sam what happened and soon he'd be telling the whole story again in the debriefing. He was afraid that if he saw Vala he'd lose it.

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Sam tried to think where she'd find Vala. She ruled out their bedroom and then their office and went towards their library. The door was shut which was unusual and then she discovered it was locked, also unusual.

Sam knocked quietly. "Vala? Are you in there? I just talked to Mitchell." Getting no response she added. "You know they're going to come and get you for the debriefing, let me in and we can talk about it." She heard movement behind the door, the lock clicked and the door opened.

Vala's face peered around the door jab. Her raven black hair was loose with no pigtails in sight. It fell like a veil covering her face but Sam could see one eye, swollen and red with tears. Sam slowly pushed the door open putting her arms around Vala as she came into the room. Sam closed the door behind her and just stood still holding Vala. Vala said nothing; in fact she made no noise at all. Her body didn't move, she didn't resist Sam's embrace she simply stood straight and unyielding like a tree.

Eventually Sam walked Vala to the desk and pushed her down into a chair. When she sat Vala kept her head down and her hair continued to hide her face. Sam squatted down in front of Vala and put her hands on the sides of her face. She gently pushed her hair to either side tucking the strands behind her ears. "Vala, honey? I think we should talk."

Sam looked at Vala's blotchy redden face with tears dried on the skin under her eyes. She was scared by the emptiness in Vala's eyes; there was no spark, no indication of life, no hope, just pain.

"Vala, Daniel didn't know. I refuse to believe it. There's been some horrible error, some kind of mistake." There was no reaction in Vala's face. Sam held Vala's shoulders and gave her a fierce shake. For what it was worth she had her attention.

"You know that Vala. You love him and you know him. He didn't know." Vala's face continued to stare at Sam with no expression. Sam stood up and pulled Vala to her feet. She pulled her close in a tight hug and whispered. "Vala. It's Daniel."

Vala pulled backwards out of Sam's arms and said. "Yes, I know. That's why I'm crying. I betrayed him Sam. I allowed myself to believe that he could've accepted such a horrendous situation. I've been there myself; when people convict you in their hearts with no regard for evidence. I don't know if you ever recover from something like that." Vala moved back into Sam's embrace. "I've lost him Sam. And now I'm lost." Vala cried silently, tears poured out of her eyes but she made no sound.

"We have to go, Vala, they're going to be waiting for us." Looking at Vala's face Sam lead her to the bathroom.

"Splash some cold water on your face. And as you like to say suck it up." Sam made Vala smile when she put air quotes around the phrase.

Sam could hear the water running. "Vala, you owe it to Daniel to be there. When he finds out the truth he's going to be an absolute mess."

Vala came out of the bathroom and nodded at Sam. "Okay. Let's go." While in the bathroom she'd put on lipstick and a little blush. Sam looked at Vala with approval. She looked better than she had minutes before and Vala had plastered one of her wide mouthed grins across her face. Sam was sure everyone would be able to spot it as a desperate attempt to hide the aftereffects of her hysteria.

"Vala, Mitchell made a comment about what he considered your uncharacteristic interest in childbirth and children. He suspects that if you hadn't gotten close to those women that the truth wouldn't have come to light. Is there something you'd like to tell me?"

"No, Sam. I'm not pregnant. It may seem odd to everyone but I've always liked children. I was a very popular babysitter in my village before I was taken. My mother used to say that I got along so well with them because I was still so much of a child myself." Vala was smiling as she spoke.

"I have to be honest. I didn't tell Daniel but we were a little careless awhile back and for a few days I thought that I might be pregnant. To say that I was terrified, for so many reasons, would be an enormous understatement. But childbirth is not the same as playing with children and my only experience was with Adria. And I suspect that was an abnormal experience."

Catching Sam's sympathetic look she added. "Perhaps I wouldn't have learned anything if I didn't have babies on my mind. But that is moot." Vala was much less tense if not yet relaxed as she and Sam linked arms and the left the library.

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General Landry was at the head of the table and Mitchell sat at the other end. Teal'c and Daniel sat across from each other. Mitchell was subdued and concentrating on writing notes on a lined tablet. Daniel just looked confused not angry. Teal'c looked expectantly at Mitchell. Landry was checking his watch when Vala and Sam entered the room.

The men looked closely at Vala but it was hard to read their expressions. Mitchell turned away once he saw that she looked composed. For the first time Landry thought that Vala looked, for lack of a better word, fragile. She looked tiny to him; he wasn't sure why he hadn't noticed before how little she was. He had known she was thin but now the only word he could come up with to describe her was gaunt. But she had her normal grin on her face. Teal'c was expressionless but if you looked closely there was concern in his eyes.

Daniel stared at Vala. He knew she would die if he said it but all he could think was that she looked like hell. She was pale underneath the color she'd put on her cheeks, she had obviously been crying and she was trembling. Any anger that he had felt towards her disappeared all he felt was fear and concern for her.

Sam went and sat next to Teal'c leaving the chair next to Daniel for Vala. Vala inhaled deeply and walked towards Daniel until she stood behind him. Bending down she put her hand on his shoulder and leaned against his ear. Before she whispered to him she pleaded to Mitchell with her eyes for permission to speak to Daniel before he started. He nodded yes without looking at Landry.

"Daniel, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. No mater how long or what it takes I promise I'll make you understand how sorry I am. Perhaps someday you'll forgive me. I have an explanation but no excuse, darling."

Daniel turned his head and speaking in a normal tone said. "You're sorry that you hit me?"

Vala head snapped back in shock. "Sorry that I hit you! You think I'm sorry that I hit you? Daniel, give me a break. Been there, done that. Don't you remember the Prometheus?" Daniel looked even more confused as she whispered to him before she sat in the chair next to him. "I'm sorry that I betrayed you. I believed that Khan told you the truth and that you were willing to accept it."

Landry looked impatient saying to Mitchell. "Colonel, do you think we could start this debriefing sometime today?"

"Yes sir! I'm going to start with a simplified overview of what happened. I'd like to ask that you don't interrupt me until I'm finished. I apologize for sounding so mysterious, but I assure you you'll have a lot of questions."

"Vala and I came across some information about the people of that planet that we need to share with everyone. I'm sorry if I sound like a pompous ass, but I don't know any other way to say this." Mitchell now had everyone's attention. Taking a very deep breath he started to speak.

"As in many cultures, agrarian and otherwise, for a multitude of reasons, they prefer to have male offspring. Their reasons aren't relevant to this discussion I have no interest in arguments for or against their societal choices. What I'm concerned with is the "final solution" that these people developed over the years." He had put air quotes around the words final solution. Landry and Daniel sat up straight and their bodies noticeably tensed up. Teal'c noticed their reactions but had no idea of the cause.

Mitchell looked directly at the General as he spoke. Landry was surprised by the seriousness of his expression and his obvious attempt to remain in control of his emotions. Vala showed no emotion and looked as if she was imitating Teal'c.

"The village leader decides on the desired ration of male to female children. Once that ratio is met subsequent female children are sold off-world." He kept his eyes on Landry terrified to look at Daniel. Ignoring collective gasps and muttered expletives he continued. "In order to provide the necessary flexibility to make adjustments due to unforeseen situations girls are available for removal from the community anytime between birth and three years of age."

Mitchell inhaled a large breath and as he exhaled he looked at the members of SG-1. Daniel and Teal'c looked sick to their stomachs. Sam knew what he was going to say but hearing Mitchell was still a shock. Vala had reached for Daniel's hand and his was clutching it as if he was drowning and she was his life line. The harder he squeezed the better Vala felt. If he broke her fingers that would be fine with her, it was enough for her that he wanted any contact with her.

"There was a misunderstanding. I thought that Chaka Khan there…"

Daniel corrected him "Its just Khan." Mitchell didn't seem to hear him.

"… had explained their gender selection procedures to Daniel and that he was expecting us to accept it without question in the name of cultural diversity and respect."

Daniel looked stunned and in pain, as if he had been hit on the head and in the stomach at the same time with a couple of 2x4s.

"Dr. Jackson, At this time I want to make a formal apology to you and ask your forgiveness."

""That's the basics. Where we go from here it up to you. I'm more than willing to express my opinion."

Vala was the first to speak. "I'm willing to admit that my punching the guy was unacceptable behavior as a member of SG-1 representing Earth. But I don't think that I regret my actions."

She stared defiantly at Landry adding. "The last thing Tari, one of the older women, told me was that in her grandmother's time they were less sophisticated in their predictions of future needs. Once the desired number of girls was reached infant girls were killed at birth. They were immediately taken from their mothers and decapitated. She said if you were lucky they waited and did it outside of your house."

Vala could tell by people's faces that her words were making them sick, but she felt she owed it to Tari to continue. "Tari said that many would prefer the old ways. Losing a child at birth was actually less painful then having a child and living in constant fear that they may not be with them past their third birthday."

As she finished the room was silent. Landry cleared his throat and spoke. "Obviously we have a complicated situation here. I don't think, Miss Mal Duran that you need to regret any of your actions. Firstly I'll need to have a complete mission report from the three of you. And I want them immediately. I will be creating a task force to investigate out options and recommend how we should proceed. Vala and Mitchell I don't want you involved in any of this in any way. Dr. Jackson I think that they may need to use you as a resource but I will not allow you to return to that planet anytime in the near future. Don't even try to change my mind. That's my final word."

Mitchell had relaxed as Landry spoke. "You are not going to have to convince me to stay away. How about you Vala?"

"I'd like permission to ask the task force members to check on my friends and keep me aware of their situation. I would also like to talk to them about providing sanctuary. I have contacts throughout the galaxy that would be more than willing to offer assistance."

"I have no problem with your requests Vala. I'll pass them along to the group. I want to get moving on this yesterday people. So get me those reports! And then go out a have a drink or two on me." He gave them all a tight lipped smile and nodded his head in dismissal.

"Yes, sir." Mitchell stood up saluted and walked towards the door. Sam and Teal'c left next with Landry right behind them.

Vala and Daniel remained sitting, neither one saying a word. He let go of her hand and said. "Lets' go back to our room. We need to talk."

Vala followed him out of the room without saying a word. She couldn't bring herself to look at his face so she stayed behind him as they walked and focused her eyes on his back.

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	42. Chapter 42

Daniel changed direction and headed for the Commissary. He stopped at a table right inside the door. "Vala, why don't you take a seat here? I won't be long." His face and voice were completely expressionless.

Vala sat without saying a word and watched him walk into the kitchen. After ten minutes he reappeared carrying two large canvas bags and headed back to the door.

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Daniel walked into the kitchen and looked around for someone to help him. There was a middle aged motherly looking woman, in a blue dress covered with a large white apron, sitting at a counter chopping carrots. She had short graying brown hair and wore a pair of half glasses. She looked up over the glasses to see who'd come through the door. The woman looked familiar to Daniel though he didn't recall her name. He wasn't sure if Vala had introduced them or not.

She recognized him but realized by his expression that he didn't know her, she smiled and said. "Hi, my name is Liz. Can I help you with something Doctor Jackson?"

"Yes, I think you can, at least I hope you can. Vala and I are headed off for what's going to be a lengthy, intense and emotionally draining conversation." He used air quotes around the word conversation. "Going back and forth from heated discussion to fight with lots of steps in between."

She continued to smile and with a chuckle asked. "And?"

"She's going to need food, lots of food. Could you please pack up some of her favorites that I can take with me? Anything that you think she might enjoy. I'm sure I can trust your judgment."

Liz put down her knife and wiped her hands off on her apron. She stuck her right hand out towards Daniel who moved closer and they shook hands. Liz stood up and motioned him to sit down on her stool. He sat and watched her as she opened a closet and brought out two large canvas L.L. Bean tote bags. Going first to the huge commercial size fridge she started to fill the first bag with fresh fruit, containers of Jell-O, assorted cheeses and a variety of Tupperware containers.

"Vala's microwave is in one of the cabinets next to her closet. She prefers to eat with other people around so she might've not used it since you moved in. I'm sure you've seen her mini-fridge next to the TV."

Daniel nodded yes.

"I know that you enjoy a wide variety of food and since our little Miss Mal Duran will eat, and enjoy, pretty much anything. So I'm going to stick in some things that you should like."

Holding out a plastic container she showed him the neatly written label saying. "This is a nice lamb curry and there's some leftover rice in the bottom of the bag." Liz pointed to another container saying "Marinara sauce with mushrooms. I'll put the pasta in the other bag with the dry goods." She suddenly moved back and opened the fridge again and began moving containers around obviously looking for a specific item." She pulled out a container in triumph. "I knew that I had this tucked away somewhere. I try and always have some on hand for Dr. Zewail. It's a soup called Molokhya .."

Daniel broke in. "That's Egyptian."

"So's Dr. Zewail. He swears it's better than his mother's. But I think he just being very polite."

When she opened a cupboard Daniel said. "Please don't forget chocolate."

She laughed. "As if I could." In the bottom of the empty bag she stacked some melamine dinner plates and bowls, a few sets of flatware, a large wooden spoon and a pile of cloth napkins. On the next layer she placed some cans of food and then boxes of pasta, crackers, cookies, chocolate candy bars, potato chips, and a small plastic bag containing a mysterious looking dark substance. Liz looked up and said "Kookaburra black licorice from Australia." She crossed the room, opened a large drawer and took out two loaves of French bread which she slipped into the bag. Lastly she tossed in a pair of salt & pepper shakers. Daniel wasn't sure if he'd seen them correctly but they looked like Winnie the Pooh and Tigger.

"I put a cheese knife in and a small cutting board. This should hold her for a couple of hours." She pushed the now full canvas bags with her feet over to where Daniel was sitting.

"Thank you. Liz, I really appreciate it. I know that Vala will too."

"There isn't much I wouldn't do for her, and I suspect you feel the same. In spite of the upcoming 'perfect storm'."

"I have another favor I need to ask. It's going to sound pretty strange.."

The woman smiled and said. "Please. Ask away."

"Would it be possible to have someone bring some food to our room tomorrow if we haven't shown up for breakfast?"

"Expecting a real knock-down, drag-out conversation are you?" He smiled shyly and she rushed to reassure him not to worry that she would take care of it.

Shaking her hand good-bye Daniel picked up the bags and went back out to the dining area.

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Vala followed Daniel down the hallway to their room. She was dying to know what was in the bags he carried but decided to wait. She opened the door; Daniel walked in and put the bags down next to the desk. He picked up and dialed the phone.

"Walter, this is Jackson. Could I please speak to General Landry. Thanks."

After a minute he started to speak into the phone. "General, I just wanted to let you know that Vala and I are going to be off-base until at least tomorrow. It's been quite an experience for everyone involved and we need to discuss what happened, in private. I'll need a little time to process the experience before I meet with your taskforce. I realize that you want to move quickly but realistically I know it won't happen that soon. Yes, I'll let Walter know when we're back. Thank you, we certainly will."

Vala was still standing right inside the door. He looked at her saying. "That should take care of anyone coming to look for us here."

"I take it we aren't actually leaving the mountain are we?"

"Nope."

Vala moved across the room to the bags and knelt on the floor. She peered inside and as she reached her hand inside one of the bags she stopped and asked. "Daniel. What's all this?"

"Vala, I may be angry and upset with you right now and maybe for some time to come. But I love you and you aren't going to starve on my watch."

Vala looked confused and stuck her hand back into the bag. She was rooting around when Daniel spoke again. "Why don't you leave that for now and we can talk."

She looked up with a chocolate bar in her hand which she held up above her head and looked pleadingly at Daniel.

"Okay, that's fine. Take it. Now we talk."

Daniel was sitting in one of the desk chairs and she headed over to sit in the other. Daniel held up his hand to stop her. "Why don't you sit over on the bed? I'm afraid that if you're too close I'll be distracted." Especially if you're eating. The last sentence just popped into his head, all he could do was hope that he hadn't said it out loud. Her expression hadn't changed so he figured he was safe, at least for the moment.

Vala walked to the bed and in one fluid movement she jumped up onto the bed ending up sitting cross-legged on one of the pillows. Daniel's eyes were drawn to her mouth as she tore off the wrapper with her teeth and started to bite the candy bar. Watching her created a terrible sinking feeling in his chest and a sense of impending doom.


	43. Chapter 43

Vala had finished eating the candy bar and was wiping off her mouth with the back of her hand. She started licking off any melted chocolate that might have been transferred from her mouth to her hand. Daniel was unable to force himself to look away and stared at her transfixed.

"I'm so sorry Daniel. Please forgive me; I can't believe that I ever thought you … I tried to tell you I ... please forgive me … I am so, so sorry." Vala couldn't finish a sentence, she was fighting crying. She knew tears would be unfair. She had to make him believe her with words.

"Why didn't you try harder to explain it to me?"

"I did Daniel."

"Vala, did you really? You said that you thought there 'might' be something off about how they were treating the women. You never told me anything concrete or even close to concrete. You just made nasty cracks about women's place in society. That all they seemed to do was, and I quote you, "cook, clean and pop out kids". Then you moved on to jokes about Sha're. You knew how badly I feel about her, how guilty that I took advantage of her. Guilty that I actually accepted a woman as a gift, that I convinced myself that I shouldn't insult their culture by refusing her, that I could pretend to go along with it and then leave her behind with no harm done. Even after I knew I was falling in love with her and couldn't possibly be objective I kept fooling myself. But still I stayed, I knew that was beyond selfish but I stayed, I couldn't leave her."

"Daniel, I didn't mean …"

"I couldn't figure out why you were bringing her up. Maybe you thought it would convince me that I should examine my involvement with their culture, that I was repeating my mistakes. But it didn't work, it just hurt."

"Daniel …"

They seemed oblivious to how loud they were talking; they were on the edge of shouting. When Daniel thought about what he was saying he was clueless as to why he was saying it. He was angry at her, he wanted to lash out, but he didn't understand why. It wasn't about Sha're, it wasn't about the planet or their culture. He knew there was something else but he couldn't wrap his mind around it.

"And then Vala, once you had some specific information, some proof, you shared it with Mitchell. You went to him."

"Wait. That's was this is about? You don't care that I believed you were guilty, you're mad because I wasn't able to convince you but I was able to convince Cam?" She looked shocked and raised her voice even more. "Now I'm angry. You were jealous? This is about you being jealous of Cam? How could you even think …?"

Daniel broke in. "I'm not jealous." As he said it Daniel knew that he was right, whatever the problem was it wasn't jealousy. "You know how to get through to me; you do it all the time. You force me to listen, to open up, and to hear what you have to say. But you didn't. I wasn't shocked that you betrayed me, I was shocked that you let me go so far, to believe that monster, to be taken in by his lies…"

Vala hurriedly unlaced her boots, pulled them off and threw them on the floor. By this time they were both shouting. Daniel walked to the bed as Vala jumped to the floor, then they were standing face to face, their bodies close but not touching. Their eyes were wild and their breathing heavy, they were almost gasping for breath. Suddenly the shouting stopped; they stood perfectly still and looked into each other's eyes.

Vala spoke first saying in a whisper. "It's over isn't it? Us, we're finished."

Daniel had his hands on her shoulders and a dazed look on his face. Not denying it he simply asked her. "What's makes you think that?"

"We're going to have break-up sex now. Amazing, heart breaking, for the last time ever, break-up sex."

He moved closer and during the seconds it took for his mouth to capture hers she jumped, wrapped her legs around his waist and they fell back onto the bed. Immediately pieces of BDU were being ripped off and tossed aside.

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Daniel woke first and found Vala asleep tucked under his arm with her head resting on his chest. He touched the tear stains on her cheek with his fingers tracing them down towards her lips. As he neared her mouth he felt irresistibly drawn and bent his head but before he made it to her lips she opened her eyes. A confused smile crossed her face and disappeared as she remembered.

They had returned to SGC in the early evening and it was now the middle of the night, not an unusual time for either of them to be awake.

Daniel politely asked "Would you like something to eat, Vala?" She nodded and they both got up out of bed. Ignoring the clothes strewn around the floor they didn't speak. Val went to the drawers and pulled out two pairs of boxer shorts and two tee-shirts. She threw a pair of shorts and one of his tee-shirts at him and stepped into the other pair of Daniel's shorts and pulling one of her tee-shirts over her head.

Daniel kneeled next to one of the canvas bags and began to pull out food items. He would hold each one up and look at Vala for a yes or no. She would nod or shake her head at each offering. He grabbed plates, silverware and napkins and stood up. Gathering everything in his arms he looked over at the bed where Vala had pulled the covers up and spread out a towel like a picnic cloth. In a few minutes they were sitting side by side leaning against the headboard and eating.

Vala forced herself to relax and after taking a deep breath she spoke. "That was interesting, wouldn't you say Daniel?"

He grunted as he bit off a piece of French bread and started to chew.

She took hold of his chin with her right hand and gently forced him to turn and look at her. She smiled. "How about friends, Daniel? No longer lovers but at least friends. Okay?"

He nodded, swallowed the bread and smiled. They both sighed in relief, relaxed and leaned back. After a few minutes Vala sat up straight and rubbed her hands together as if to shake off any leftover crumbs.

"Well, friend. I have to go take a shower. I was hot and sweaty and pretty filthy when we left the planet. And now…" Flashing one of her patented Cheshire cat grins she hoped off the bed and headed to the bathroom. She came out of the bathroom in under ten minutes with her wet hair in one long braid down the back of her neck wearing only one of his tee-shirts. His shirt was actually more modest than most of her nightgowns. Daniel had cleaned off the bed, picked up their leftovers and put two bottles of spring water on the night stand.

"My turn."

While he showered Vala had changed the sheets and was sitting in the bed with her legs under the covers. Daniel came out wearing only a pair of pajama pants and joined her in bed. She was drinking one of the bottles of water and held out the other bottle to him. They sat quietly next to each other, not touching but not actively trying not to touch, drinking water. Daniel broke the silence first.

"You know that I'm angry at myself that I was fooled by that man. What did Cam call him?"

Vala looked surprised when he said Cam's name. "Chaka Khan. She's a singer. I don't think it means anything, her name just popped into his head when he thought of Khan."

"Talk about unprofessional and being manipulated. I feel like a total amateur. I showed no respect for my team. I don't know what happened. I liked the people and their lives. I wanted it to be a good place, it just seemed important. How crappy is my judgment? How can I trust myself or expect the rest of you to trust me."

"Please listen to what I have to say and think before you react."

Daniel nodded in agreement.

"I think it was tied to Sha're and Abydos, and I just made it a hundred times worse by bringing her up and your life together. Life on that planet was, at least on the surface, similar to life on Abydos. Abydos was a good place and the people led good lives. Maybe you felt it could help make up for your failure to save Abydos and Sha're."

As they talked their voices got quieter and their bodies relaxed until they leaned against each other. Soon they felt their eyes start to close and had to mentally shake themselves to stay awake. Daniel talked about Abydos with Vala sharing a part of his life that he'd hidden for years. Vala tried to make him see that he shouldn't blame himself for the blind eye he turned to the horror that was within the planet's society, the truth would have come to light. Vala was trying to be as honest as she could, at one point she told him that she felt in some small part responsible for his reaction. She'd pushed and pushed at him, even when she realized that she was upsetting him and that her behavior was counter productive. She wasn't feeling quite honest enough to tell him that she was still working on why she'd done it. She wasn't sure herself and decided she could get back to it later. Introspective was difficult for anyone to do and nigh well impossible when physically exhausted.

"Daniel, if you don't mind I'm going to turn out the light, I think we should try and sleep a little. We can work out all the complicated breaking up shit later; we're both too tired to make sense. I want to be fully awake when we duke out the living arrangements; you know I'm getting custody of the library."

Vala leaned over and turned out the light. The room wasn't completely dark, it never was. Vala preferred to sleep with some sort of night light and since Daniel could fall asleep no matter how much light there was in the room it was never without some soft diffused light. Vala had a substantial collection of night lights, little animals, birds, sea shells, etc. Recently Daniel had given her what was now her favorite, a blue Smurf. Some nights she would take them all out of her drawer and line them up while she decided which one to use. Daniel never said anything but she knew he was watching and listening, the choosing was accompanied by a running commentary. There were a lot of variables involved in the process. Beyond color and shape, there was her mood. She also kept a detailed tally in her head of how often each light was used. Vala liked to make sure that they all received equal opportunity to serve and none had their feeling hurt. Though she had been known to give special exemptions to favorites, like her Smurf. Like tonight sometimes they simply left the light on over the medicine cabinet and the bathroom door ajar. It gave off enough light for Vala to get up and out of the room during the night without tripping over furniture, hastily discarded clothes, files, book or the occasional clay tablet.

"Sure. Friends can share a bed. No problem."

They slipped under the covers while turning over so they were back to back. They laid still for five minutes, each trying to even out their breathing and closing their eyes, hoping for sleep.

Daniel whispered. "Vala, are you asleep."

"No. I can't get comfortable."

"This is crazy, neither one of us is going to be able to sleep like this. Let's get comfortable. Come here." Daniel turned his body towards hers into their usual sleeping position. Her back tight against the front of his body and his left arm thrown over her shoulder holding her gently but firmly in place. Within minutes they both drifted off.

Vala was having a nightmare. Not in itself an unusual occurrence, but this time she hadn't woken in time to get out of bed without him realizing what had happened. Daniel was already awake and was propped up on his elbow watching her sleep when she became agitated, thrashing her body around and crying fitfully. Daniel gathered Vala close to his body and stroked her hair until she quieted down. After her body calmed she continued to cry softly and mumbling, Daniel leaned down to hear that she was saying his name.

Vala woke to find herself nestled in Daniel's arms and him kissing the top of her head. She leaned back in his arms so she could look into his face.

When Daniel saw that her eyes were opened he smiled and said. "We aren't over, you know? Not by a long shot. And I'm thinking we're going to have to skip the whole "just friends" thing."

"What makes you think that Daniel?"

"Friends don't have amazing heart mending make-up sex."

Vala didn't even have enough time to smile before he kissed her. And though removed in record time no clothes were torn in the subsequent events.

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Sometime later they woke at the same time. During the past three hours Vala had wiggled out of Daniel's arms and was now laying kitty cornered across his body with her head on the pillow next to him with her face down. As she woke Vala lifted her head off the pillow and turned slightly trying to see Daniel. Her hair had escaped from its braid and now hung over her face covering her eyes. She blew out a breath aiming it towards her eyes but there was too much hair in the way. Daniel slid his hand under the hair and moved it out of her eyes. He laughed when Vala crossed her eyes while trying to focus on his face.

"You're a little crooked here baby. How about you swing around a little bit…." Daniel attempted to move her body so it was completely on top of him face to face toe to toe. He wasn't having any success at shifting her body, and then he realized that she was actively resisting and actually holding on to the sheet to keep her body from moving.

"Vala, what the hell are you doing?" She didn't answer then he heard muffled noises from his pillow. Vala had put her face back down on the pillow and was grabbing the sheet with her fingers. She was trying to stifle her laughter but with less and less success until finally she had to roll over so she wouldn't smother herself. What might have started out as a ladylike giggle was now a loud boisterous guffaw. Daniel looked at her in amazement, she was laughing so hard she'd started to cry.

"Vala? That wasn't nearly as funny as you seem to think it was." Daniel's remark made her laugh even louder. Gradually she ran out of steam and stopped laughing, though an occasional chuckle did escape. Daniel had to smile, if only in self defense. He refused to be the jerk with no sense of humor, though he had no idea what she found so funny about him trying to gently move her naked body on top of his while she held onto the sheets with some kind of alien death grip. He also had to smile from the sheer joy of being in love with this crazy woman.

At this point they were on their backs laying side by side and holding hands.

"I never even saw Liz put that whipped cream in the bag. What made you look for it Vala?"

"Darling, I was sure that she'd stuck in something fun. Liz probably remembered how much you like whipped cream and figured you'd be able to come up with some creative applications. This is why I need a shower, even though you did manage to lick off most of it."

Daniel got out of bed and went to the bathroom when he returned to the bed Vala yelled shower and leaped over his body to land on the floor. After about five minutes she stuck her head out through the door, "What's the scoop? Are we ready to face reality? Should I get dressed?"

"Not for now, let's have breakfast and then see how we feel."

Vala came back with her wet hair straight and loose on her shoulders wearing a bright yellow fluffy terry cloth robe; in her hand she held a similar robe in blue. Daniel looked questioning.

"Don't worry darling. I bought them on-line. One of the cleaning staff was telling me about stealing them from hotels, but it seems we never get to go to the class of hotels that supply their customers with such luxury. So rather than wait until we did I ordered them for us. And yes that was a joke about not stealing them because I didn't want to wait. Or at least partially a joke."

Daniel took the robe from her as he went in to take his shower saying. "I think that we're going to be awfully clean by the end of this"

"And just what is this?"

"I'm not really sure to tell the truth. I think it's our own cockeyed way of working out issues."

"Then we can only hope that we'll end up extremely clean Darling."

Vala was sitting at the desk having pulled the food bags close to her chair. She was trying to figure out what food they had left and how much when she heard a faint noise at the door. After a few seconds there was a faint knock. Intrigued Vala went to the door and opened it a crack, she laughed when she saw her friend Liz leaving another canvas bag on the floor outside of their room.

"What the hell's this Liz?"

"Daniel asked me to bring you guys more food if you didn't make it to breakfast, which you didn't, so I did. Bring you food." She smiled and leaned into the room far enough to give Vala a quick hug. As Liz handed the bag to Vala she added. "You just might want to think about keeping this one, Dearie"

Daniel came out wearing his fluffy robe, spotting Vala at the door he took the bag and sat it on the desk.

"Great! Liz made it. I'm sure she put something good in." he started to pull out anything that looked interesting. Vala had started the coffee maker they kept on a table by the fridge, without it she would've never been able to keep Daniel in their room for any appreciable length of time.

"I'm willing to bet that you'll find all your favorites. I hope there's at least one thing that I like in there."

"Vala, what are you talking about? What favorites? You like everything."

"It seems you have anew friend. Liz seems to think that you're nice and a good catch. Whatever that is."

"It refers to fish."

"Fish? Fish? Little swimmy things fish?" At his nod she continued. "Obviously something I have to check into later. I'll get Rayna to explain it to me. I'm not sure what kind of linguist the woman is but she is certainly good at Tau'ri slang and idioms."

Daniel looked confused. "What about Liz?"

Vala walked over to help Daniel check out the contents of the bag. "Later darling." Knowing exactly how to deflect his questions she said. "I think the coffee's done."

His eyes lit up and he went to pour two cups for them.

Vala was sitting in one of the desk chairs and Daniel sat on the floor with his head resting against her knees. They were finishing their breakfast and Daniel had just poured his third cup of coffee.

"Vala, while I was in the shower I was thinking…"

"Darling, is this one of those times when I should repeat Cameron's lines. That's how we get into trouble; I wondered where the smoke was coming from, and so on."

Daniel continued as if he hadn't heard her. "I have a lot of what Mitchell's grandmother would call book learning but I'm not so quick with the intricacies of interpersonal relationships. In fact that statement is probably an example of my difficulties. Well, regardless of my deficiencies I think maybe we need to talk some more about what happened on that planet. Not with them, but between us. What do you think?"

Vala felt panic and what she thought was maybe talking wasn't always a good idea. "I don't know Darling. I think we covered all the bases don't you? What could be left to discuss." She could hear for herself how nervous she sounded, nervous and frightened.


	44. Chapter 44

Mitchell and Sam were sitting in the Commissary having breakfast expecting to meet Daniel, Vala & Teal'c.

"So, Sam, are we early or are those guys late?"

"Walter said that Vala and Daniel went off-base last night and don't expect to return until today at the earliest. The General gave them permission to take the day off if they wanted. I figure they went to Daniel's apartment."

"I doubt that Sam. I don't think they spend any time there. Jackson didn't leave the Mountain very often before Vala. His life revolved around SGC for a long time and now it revolves around SGC and Vala. He mentioned that he was thinking about putting the stuff that he hasn't already brought here into storage and letting go of the apartment. Maybe Vala talked him into checking into a fancy hotel, he's got to feel like he owes her one after what happened on that planet."

"Hey, there's Tealc and Rayna. Yo! Over here." Mitchell stood up and waved at Teal'c. Rayna smiled and waved back while Teal'c barely nodded his head. Teal'c took a tray and got in line and Rayna sat down next to Sam.

"I'm so glad that you were the one who got to go on that mission with Daniel and Vala. I fear Teal'c would have killed that Kahn person."

Mitchell looked at Rayna trying to decide if she was teasing. "Sounds like a plan to me."

Teal'c sat next to Rayna placing a glass of orange juice and a bowl of cereal on the table in front of her and keeping the still full tray in front of him. "Has anyone seen Vala Mal Duran or Daniel Jackson this morning?"

Sam replied. "They're still off base; we're not sure when they'll be back."

Rayna commented. "I wonder where they would've gone. Daniel didn't renew the lease on his apartment."

"I told you so, Sam."

"When was that Rayna?"

"Last month when Teal'c and I were apartment hunting we talked to Daniel about his place, he offered to sublet it to us but it wasn't exactly what we wanted. We wanted a bigger place and not in an apartment complex."

"I love your place, it's got character. Great hardwood floors, high ceilings and "

"Indeed, Colonel Carter. However I feel Rayna did not realize the correct English definition of "character"."

Sam and Mitchell laughed when Teal'c put air quotes around the word character.

"Please ignore him. Teal'c has developed a close personal relationship with Home Depot."

Sam and Mitchell continued to laugh. They both loved to see Teal'c happy. Though they would only admit it to each other Teal'c and Rayna had the most normal life of anyone on SG-1. Vala and a lot of SGC staff who worked the evening and night shifts missed having him around, but no one begrudged him his new found happiness. Rayna had acclimated to Earth culture even more quickly than Vala and her temperament was better suited to fitting in. Though she did admit to cheating a little sometimes by using her empath skills.

Teal'c looked up from his oatmeal. "It is most obvious that as an alien female, Rayna is at times very similar to Vala Mal Duran." He kept his face expressionless forcing Mitchell to ask the obvious.

"I know this is a set-up but I'll ask anyway. In what ways similar?"

"I think it is described as telling lies for humorous effect. Though I have began to exchange pleasantries with Eric in the paint department. I suspect that we may have much in common. He has shared with me the fact that his wife is from Venus."

Sam almost choked and Mitchell did an almost perfect spit take with his water. Sam had begun to suspect that Mitchell and Teal'c practice their comedy routine, their delivery had become much too polished. Though from the look on his face she thought Teal'c wasn't supposed to be on the receiving end of that specific effect.

Everyone was laughing while Rayna ineffectually wiped Teal's damp sleeve with a paper napkin.

"I am of the opinion that they remain on base." When everyone looked at him he nodded towards the kitchen door. Liz was walking out with a canvas bag stuffed with a variety of food. "Liz is most likely on her way to deliver food to them."

"I didn't realize that the SGC offered room service. Do you think they have a menu I could look at?"

No one answered Mitchell's question dismissing it as an attempt at humor. He shrugged his shoulders with a 'you can't blame me for trying' smile on his face.

Sam was looking sideways at Rayna who pretended she didn't notice. Teal'c did they same. When Mitchell gave her the same questioning look she admitted defeat.

"I don't like to do this and I refuse to do it on a regular basis. But I could just momentarily let my Vala shield down for a brief moment." She closed her eyes and after a few seconds a smile crossed her lips and she gave a contented sigh.

Opening her eyes she made her report. "Yes, they are here. Vala is very happy, relaxed and proud of herself which means that Dr. Jackson is in near proximity to her."

"Well, are they getting ready? Are they on their way here? Spit it out Rayna." As soon as he said it Mitchell realized he should duck. But she showed him mercy and there was no spitting.

"You know Mitchell that I only receive impressions and feelings. I don't read minds, or see through walls, reanimate the dead…"

"So you say. I, for one, reserve judgment."

Sam stood up. "The food delivery makes me think we won't see them until lunch at the earliest. Well, I'll be in my lab if anyone's looking for me. Coming, Rayna?"

Rayna stood up kissed the top of Teal'c head and left the room with Sam.

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Vala and Daniel were indulging in what he thought of as their Sunday traditions. Weekends had little or no meaning for SG-1 but they did get down time between missions. After watching a huge number of romantic movies Vala had wanted to know exactly what the Sunday New York Times was and what it signified to couples? It was one of the few romantic social rituals that Daniel could, and was eager to, explain. After an experiment or two they asked Walter to have the Sunday paper delivered to their room each week awaiting their return. Sometimes they would have three papers waiting for them but they always started with the oldest and worked their way forward.

Daniel sprawled out on the bed with sections of the paper piled haphazardly on either side of him. He was reading about an archeological dig in Arizona his coffee within easy reach on the nightstand. Vala was sitting in the desk chair with her feet tucked under her butt. She appeared lost in the crossword puzzle with a pen in her right hand and the compact OED on the desk within easy reach. Next to the dictionary was a plate heaped with fruit, pastries and bagels. In the beginning she'd frequently needed Daniel's help. However it wasn't long before she made the switch from pencil to pen. Soon after that when she asked him for help he had the distinct impression that it was a pity request. He was still amazed at how quickly she had caught on and how good she was at it.

"Hey Vala. Listen to this." He started reading a section of the article out loud. Vala stopped working and looked over at him expectantly. There were a lot of things that Daniel and Vala did together. He'd never told her that one of his favorites were these pseudo Sundays. He would share what he was reading and when it caught her fancy they'd soon be involved in a heated discussion not a fight but a passionate exchange of thoughts and ideas. He stopped reading and looked at her. It would be so easy to continue on, to ignore what happened between them on the planet, to decide to suppress any doubts or fear. But he was more frightened that he was postponing dealing with a problem that would come back later and bite them in the ass. And the results of their next break-up might turn out much worse than badly.

Vala saw a look in Daniel's eyes that made her nervous. She knew they were thinking the same thing and that was scary, they knew each other too well. Once again scary. She looked down and reached for her pen hoping he would follow her cowardly lead.

"Vala? My dearest? It's time. Time to face the music."

"I don't get that at all. Why would anyone face music? You can't look at music. And you certainly don't have to face music to hear it."

"Doesn't matter what expression we use. How about the old classic 'We have to talk?'"

Vala put down the paper and pen and raked her fingers through her hair. Taking a rubber band off her left wrist she used her right hand to gather her hair back in a pony tail and pulled it through the band. Grabbing an apple she stood up and walked to the bed. Daniel shoved the papers off of the bed onto the floor and patted the space next to him. Vala did her customary jump and landed next to him. She pulled her knees to her chest holding them with her left hand and biting the apple she had in her right. Daniel sat still and looked expectantly at her.

"Okay. All right! Let's do it." She took a large bite and tossed the rest of the apple into the trash can across the room.

"Mitchell been helping you with your free throws?"

"Yes. And he says I'm a natural at bee ball. Whatever that is."

"You know I don't think well on my feet when I'm dealing with emotions, I need time to process and, yes I realize that love is messy and doesn't always allow time. But you know that's one of my many endearing flaws." She had to smile at that not just because he was adorable but because it was true. He had never pretended otherwise.

"And you actually have a few relationship issues yourself, baby. So let's just save the 'who's more screwed up than whom' song and dance for couple's therapy."

Vala wasn't sure what that was but liked the idea that it had something to do with couples, though the song and dance part just sounded peculiar. She made a mental note to have Rayna explain it to her. If Rayna didn't know she would find out, she was exceeding good at that sort of thing. So she nodded in agreement.

"Something else was going on between us on that planet. I think it had something to do with the way you've been acting the past two weeks. You still don't trust me, which I understand. It might hurt but I do understand. You were hiding something and I allowed you to pretend you were okay. I actually enabled you because I didn't want to think what the problem might be. You're not usually hesitant about stating your complaints, making demands, insisting on immediate emotional reactions from me and so on. When you're upset and act like you're not, it frightens me. And you know fear's been known to make me lash out. I'm not saying that there aren't incredibly important issues involved there on the planet, but I do think our communication was impaired and that led to some of the more stupid actions on the part of both of us."

"I do have to agree darling, much as it pains me. And you are right I was upset and I didn't share it with you. And why I was upset isn't the real problem. You're right, the problem is trust and my automatic shift into 'pretend nothing's wrong and concentrate on fooling everyone' mode is a problem."

"And I don't help when I don't force the issue. This isn't anything new between us. Maybe we've been really happy and somehow thought that would make the neurotic dysfunctional aspects of our relationship disappear."

"Again I hate to say it Daniel but you may be right. We knew it was going to be a long row to hoe." She had put the phrase in air quotes and said as an aside. "Learned that from Mitchell's mom, it's a farming reference."

"Only the two of us could be so happy that we forgot that it was actually going to involve, in addition to love, work, compromise and some honest to God trust."

Vala had moved close to Daniel while they spoke and they were now leaning against each other shoulder to shoulder. When Daniel said the word trust he took hold of her hand pulled it up to his mouth and kissed her knuckles.

"Just out of curiosity do you mind telling me what was going on?"

"It was one of those things that just got out of hand and snowballed into some sort of television after school special."

"After school special?"

"Sam and I often watch them with Walter, also those nice movies on the Lifetime channel."

"Okay. Exactly which one?"

"The 'I might be pregnant and I'm scared to tell my boyfriend because he might dump me' one."

"Does the use of the word might mean that you're not?"

"Do you want it to?"

"Sorry, but you don't get to ask that." He let go of her hand took her face between both hands and pulled her close for a quick kiss. Then he put his hands on her shoulders and pushed her away and down onto the bed.

Vala lay on her back looking up at Daniel who began to twiddle his thumbs with a broad smile on his face. She was incensed. When he started to hum she got up on her knees and straddling his thighs began to punch his chest with her fists. He looked down and smiled. He put his arms around her pulling her into a tight embrace. She stopped hitting long enough to kiss him.

Vala sat back and opened her mouth to speak. He twisted out from under her and out of the bed. "Too late. We'll talk about it next time it comes up, that is if you bother to tell me about it."

"Daniel! Stop. What are you doing?"

"I'm getting dressed. I think we should try and chase down the team. Plus we can go to lunch."

Vala shrugged and gave up. She was ready to start a new day. And lunch wasn't a bad idea.

They were both dressed and walking out of the room. Daniel had the now empty canvas bags slung over one arm.

"Vala dearest obviously we need to talk about children, I want to talk about children, but let's not wait for a crisis. And maybe tonight I'll tell you what I would have said."

She gave him a questioning look.

"Yes, I do know exactly what I would have said. I wouldn't have needed any time to process or over think my feelings." Vala gave him a dirty look.

"You know, this is sort of fun. For once I know something that you don't."

"Frelling control freak!"

They closed the door and walked down the hall holding hands with smug smiles of satisfaction on both their faces.


	45. Chapter 45

Sam and Rayna were taking a break; they'd been going over Mya and Sam's work on phase shifting. Mya was feeling optimistic about a breakthrough and Rayna thought she might find something in her research on her people's origins that would shed some light on their, possibly technologically enhanced, abilities.

"Sam, I'd like to go over this with Daniel and Vala and then maybe I could touch bases with the Nox."

"That sounds pretty good Rayna. Hopefully we'll be able to catch up with one of them…" Sam looked towards the door. "Hey, Teal'c. What's up?"

"I'm on my way to meet Colonel Mitchell in the gym for a sparing session."

"Come in, sit, talk with us for a minute. We're taking a little breather."

"Gladly, Samantha Carter."

Teal'c corrected himself in response to her glare. Teal'c had recently started to call Vala just Vala without adding Mal Duran and San had decided she deserved the same treatment. "Gladly, Sam."

"That's better. Hey, Mitchell, looking for Teal'c?"

Mitchell walked into the lab and sat on the stool next to Rayna. Teal'c was standing behind her with his hands on her shoulders.

"I am helping them take a respite from their work Colonel Mitchell." 

"Sounds good to me. I don't mind taking a respite from another session of you kicking my ass." Teal'c nodded and smiled at Mitchell.

Mitchell turned to look at Rayna. "You're probably the best person to ask. Why do you think Jackson and Vala are still living on base? You guys moved out right away. I thought Vala'd be raring to get out into the world and wreak her own kind of havoc."

Sam answered before Rayna said anything. "Vala's does get out. She and Daniel went to Paris just a couple of weeks ago."

When Mitchell looked across the table at Sam he saw movement out of the corner of his eye. He could have sworn Teal'c leaned down and kissed the top of Rayna's head. That was as bad as catching Daniel and Vala "making our" in the armory, one of the few previously safe places for after hours medical consultations. His "friend" told him later that when she saw his face she expected to find her father in the room. Once she saw it was Vala and Daniel she started to giggle so loudly he had to put his hand over her mouth and drag her backwards through the hallway to the Infirmary, all the time desperately whispering "shush" in her ear. 

Sam continued. "I think their life here suits both of them, at least for now. Can you see either of them cooking meals, doing laundry, balancing a checkbook, cleaning a bathroom? On top of spending most of their time traveling through outer space and saving a galaxy or two. On base it's like living in the dorm at college. You can do what you want to when you want to and don't have to worry about the responsibilities of day to day life. I don't think either of them got a chance to go through any sort of normal adolescence…."

Mitchell broke in. "Is there really any such thing? Somehow normal and adolescent seem mutually exclusive."

"That may be true Cam. But being taken to be a host as a young girl and then thrown out alone into an unfriendly and violent world is a little less normal than most adolescent experience. Daniel lived with his parent in digs around the world, which wasn't a normal life no matter how happy they were, only to be emotionally abandoned by his parents' death and then physically by his grandfather. I think you should cut them a break if they want to spend some time in their lives having fun, they deserve it."

Mitchell looked concerned. "Don't you think he'll want a normal life now that he has Vala? A home? A family?"

Sam looked at Mitchell trying to decide if he knew about Vala's scare. "Family?" She looked questionably at him. He stared back at her trying to decide if his reference meant something to her.

"It's okay, you can speak freely. Vala already spoke to Teal'c and me, and I see she has spoken to you Mitchell. You too Sam. She was frightened, she didn't know how Daniel would feel. She didn't know how she felt. That was when she made her mistake."

Mitchell quickly asked. "What mistake? Did she do something?"

Rayna gave him a calm smile. "It was something that she didn't do. A sin of omission not commission. Vala didn't talk to Daniel. She spoke to us and she spoke to the two of you. I don't know what Daniel's reaction might have been to the idea of a child, but I'm afraid his reaction to her silence will be anger. Anger at her, because she didn't trust him. That it was about a possible baby has nothing to do with the problem. It's the lack of trust and believing in a self-fulfilling prophecy of deserved unhappiness."

You could see from Sam's face that an idea had just occurred to her. "Mitchell, do you think that's why Vala was so interested in the plight of those pregnant women?"

Mitchell considered her question then shook his head. "No, I really don't. Vala and I both knew that something was wrong; the feel of the place was just off. The whole ball of wax felt hinky. Daniel was preoccupied and probably scared about Vala; he knew something was wrong between them. I'm sure he assumed she was going to leave him and he immersed himself in his work in order to avoid thinking. He wanted the people to be happy if he could believe someone could be happy maybe he and Vala had a chance. Besides which Daniel always thinks the best of people, it wouldn't be the first time he made an error in judgment because he's too damn nice."

As Teal'c began to speak, Rayna looked up at him and smiled. "But there is no baby, perhaps there never will be."

Rayna added. "That's not what's important; it's the hiding and mistrust." 

Teal'c continued. "And if it be so there is no tragedy. Children are beyond a blessing. As you know I speak from experience, but there are many things worse in this life than not having children."

Rayna tried to explain what he was trying to say. "Teal'c doesn't mean that they shouldn't have children, or that they don't deserve children or that they would be bad parents. But in their lives they have endured much evil, pain and suffering. They may not ever have the opportunity to enjoy what you think of as a "normal" family. SG-1 is, for now, all of their family."

"Not that their child, if they ever did exist, wouldn't be adorable. I think what you might call a 'scamp'." 

Rayna was pleased to see them all smile at her remarks. She and Mya had often laughed at how fixated these humans were with procreation. Mya said that Thomas had tried to explain something he called the biological imperative, but he just made her laugh. 

Jason was intrigued by Maya's reactions to Earth, or at least American, mores and customs. He wanted to interview her and Rayna in preparation for a research study. Thomas had to remind him that they were currently heavily involved in a very important project. After reprimanding Jason, Thomas had to stop himself from asking about her culture's take on sexual orientation. During a previous discussion Jason had to explain how in certain situations the two of them had to resort to subterfuge about their relationship. Mya seemed intrigued and asked for more details. While Jason answered her questions she took copious notes in the Tau'ri notebook that Rayna had passed on to her.

"I don't even want to start talking to you Tau'ri about men and women; I'll just leave it at 'like a fish without a bicycle.'" Sam snorted a laugh which turned into a choking fit, while she recovered Teal'c and Mitchell just continued to look confused.

Rayna decided that their break was now over. "This has been enlightening and enjoyable; however Sam and I need to return to our tasks. Myself I need to find one of our endearing emotional cripples before I can continue." Rayna tried to keep what Mitchell called a Teal'c face and Vala a poker face when she spoke colloquial English in order to keep her friends guessing if she was serious. Lately she noticed that Mitchell had caught on to her game and now gave her conspiratorial knowing looks.

"Sam, why don't you try and give them a call and tell them to get down here? And I swear if they start to play kissy face I'll hit both of them upside the head."

Rayna wasn't familiar with Mitchell's choice of slang but she'd got the gist of it. "I'll call them Sam. I'm the one who needs their input."

Before anyone could make a call Daniel and Vala walked into the room. They were standing very close to each other but not touching nor were they holding hands. Mitchell frowned and started intently at his two friends. Neither one blinked and simply returned his stare. 

Finally Vala broke the silence. "What? Take a picture Mitchell it'll last longer." Moving her eyes towards Sam she said. "Sam. Rayna. Teal'c." Nodding and smiling as she greeted each one.

Daniel smiled and nodded. "Guys. How's it going? Whatcha doing?"

Rayna jumped in before anyone else could speak. "I wanted to go over some texts I just turned up that might be relevant, and then arrange a filed trip to visit the Nox."

Vala's face lit up. "A field trip? Is that like a road trip? Daniel, let's go! Lead on Rayna!" She grabbed one of Daniel's hands and one of Rayna's and skipped towards the door.

Rayna looked back at the rest of the team as she let Vala pull her along. "I'll see you later. Teal'c, dinner at six?" Teal'c nodded in response and Sam and Mitchell gave little waves.

"Guys, I want brownie points for taking the high road. Somehow I restrained myself from comment about them finally coming up for air."

"Congrats for taking the high road. For once."

"Sam, I'm hurt." Mitchell pulled back holding his hand against his chest and tried to look as if his feelings were injured.

"Colonel Mitchell, perhaps we should leave also. Sam might welcome the quiet."

"Yes. It's been swell, but …"

The two men walked out of the room and headed to the gym.

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Rayna, Vala and Daniel were crowded around a photograph of a tablet covered in Ancient text. Vala had put out a bounty of sorts on 'very, very old' manuscripts, books, tablets, etc. with any relation to or even mention of Rayna's people. Though pleased by the results of Vala's 'shopping' he couldn't stop himself from thinking it might be a little like cheating. Vala assured him that everything she bought had already been removed from its original location. Their research was still necessary to determine where new finds might be located. These things were already on the open market, she wasn't paying enough to finance any actual searches for undiscovered items.

"Rayna, this paragraph definitely refers to ascension. Don't you agree Vala?"

"Right here Darling, there's a reference to laws or regulations, maybe guides? What do you think?"

Daniel looked at the section. "Rules? Procedures? Maybe standards?"

Vala pointed to a line at the end of the page. "This is talking about punishment."

Vala folded her arms across her chest. "Humph. Those Ancients punished these people. I don't know why or how but I intend to find out."

"The Nox?"

"I think its time Daniel. We can show them all the similarities between the Nox and Rayna's people, and if they've been delving into their history like they promised we might just come up with some answers."

Rayna asked. "How do we contact them?"

Vala and Daniel spoke together. "Jack!"

"I'll go talk to Sam. Meanwhile the two of you can continue to dissect the rest of it."

Before she finished the sentence they were bending their heads over the document talking excitedly.

"Daniel, what do you think's Ancient for amnesia?"

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The team sent to make a preliminary assessment of the society that sold female children to control the male female ratio, had returned to SGC. General Landry had met with them for a debriefing and had Walter assemble SG-1 for a meeting. The team had asked Walter if he knew what was up, but he denied knowing anything. After some minor cases of what the general called rumor mongering he was trying to avoid any further reprimands by keeping his mouth shut. Not an easy task but he was handling it, so far.

The General was seated at the head of the table when they arrived in the room. Vala and Daniel surprised him by being the first there. Teal'c and Mitchell were next leaving Sam to come in after the rest of the team. Landry was smiling. He started to speak as Walter gave each one of them a four page handout.

"Well people. For once it seems that things are as bad as we originally thought. It turns out that a lot of people on that planet have been unhappy with selling children. In fact there's an active underground that's been attempting to buy back the children. Over the past few years they have established contacts with slave runners and made agreements to purchase them back at a healthy profit for the slavers. The political situation is very complicated and many years of being controlled by the ruling elders has not made their job easy. There are government spies everywhere and betrayal is a constant threat, so they must hide their actions. The regime is oppressive, not just in the area of population control, and it takes a great deal of courage to go against the elders, but they were convinced that they'd prevail. And now they are celebrating, thankful to Vala and Mitchell for exposing the corruption and evil that permeated their lives. Those people don't have to be convinced that their elders are wrong, they need our support. I am confident that we will be able to reach a compromise with Zhan and his goons, we can be pretty persuasive."

SG-1 looked at Landry in shock. He laughed at their expressions. "Amazing isn't it? Read your reports people. Take a deep breath and smile. Grab on to this and feel good about the world, at least for a little while. Now skedaddle. I order you all to stop working and get out of here. Out of the Mountain. You're smart, come up with a plan. Go now and go together." In an aside to Teal'c he said. "That includes Rayna, of course. And you Mitchell feel free to liberate any workaholic medical personnel you might find in the Infirmary." Landry kept a straight face while panic crossed Mitchell's face. Mitchell stuttered out a weak Yes, Sir and Landry relaxed his face into a smile.

Waving them out Landry frowned saying. "Shoo! All of you. Shoo!"


	46. Chapter 46

After the General had given them their walking papers SG-1 arranged to meet at Teal'c and Rayna's apartment for dinner. It turned out that Teal'c had been watching a lot of Food Network during his down time over the past years. Jack couldn't help but laugh when Sam would mention Teal'c's dinner parties, until he made it to one. That had been over three months ago and Jack was still raving about the meal.

Teal'c was cutting up vegetables for a salad when there was a knock on the door. He wiped his hands on the dish towel wrapped around his waist and walked towards the door. Rayna was sitting on the couch with her feet up on the glass coffee table and a bottle of beer in her hand.

Rayna had never liked wearing BDUs or any type of military clothing. She loved all of her friends at SGC but organizations dedicated to warfare were foreign to her. It didn't mean she thought they were evil and she understood there could be times when it might appear to be the only way to handle a situation, but violence is not only distressing to an empath it could be physiologically damaging. So as soon as possible she started wearing civilian clothes. Marta and Rose had supplied her with her first Tau'ri clothing but she'd soon developed her own style. Rayna rarely wore anything but jeans and tee shirts and for the past few months she'd taken to wearing cowboy boots, claiming it was only natural since she lived in Colorado. Vala admired her obsession with clothing though it was limited to tee shirts; she had a collection that filled four drawers in her dresser. Rayna had started with brightly colored shirts but soon moved on to shirts with patterns, logos, sayings, rock and roll bands, cartoon characters, art work, advertisements, and political statements. She was wearing one of her favorites a Bart Simpson "I See Dumb People shirt.

"Teal'c! Someone's at the door. Do you want me to get it?" Rayna didn't even try to pretend that she would get even consider getting up.

"That's okay. I wouldn't want to disturb you. Stay where you are. Relax. As the young people say, chill."

"Very funny, Teal'c. Whatever happened to 'Mister I wouldn't get a joke if it bit me on the ass?"

Teal'c took a quick detour on his way to the door. Standing behind Rayna he put his hands on her shoulders and kissed the top of her head. "Perhaps Colonel Mitchell has been a good influence."

Rayna leaned back her head so he could kiss her on the lips. "Good or bad, I'm not sure which."

Mitchell and Dr. Lam walked into the apartment. Mitchell handed Teal'c a bottle of wine. As he thrust the bottle towards him Mitchell said. "Here ya go."

Carolyn made a fist and punched him in the arm. Mitchell pretended that she had hurt him and rubbed his arm while he asked her. "What was that for?" Carolyn looked at him as if he had two heads.

"Okay, maybe not the most gracious way to present a gift. But they don't mind, do you guys?" He walked further into the room and smiled when he saw Rayna on the couch.

"Hey, Teal'c. You are one lucky guy." Teal'c looked at Rayna and then at Mitchell.

"Indeed."

"You manage to hook up with the 'hot blonde alien babe' and then…" Mitchell put his description of Rayna in air quotes.

It was difficult, as usual, to read Teal'c's expression, but Rayna looked thrilled.

".. she starts to channel Jack O'Neill."

Carolyn looked at him in shock but before she could reach out and punch him once again Rayna made a choking sound. The Doctor Lam persona took over and she rushed to check on the patient. But Rayna was laughing rather than choking. Teal'c got a paper towel in the kitchen and come over to wipe up the beer she'd spilled on the table.

"Indeed!"

Teal'c's comment made Rayna laugh even harder. Carolyn just looked puzzled as Teal'c and Mitchell joined in.

Rayna sat up putting her feet on the floor and as her laughter subsided told Mitchell. "That was a good one Colonel."

Rayna put her beer down on the table and walked over to the three of them. She took the bottle of wine from Teal'c saying. "Cam. Carolyn. Thank you very much for the wine it was very thoughtful of you. Teal'c why don't you two get drinks for everyone and I'll show Carolyn around the apartment since she's never seen it."

"Carolyn, welcome to our home. Let's start in the bathroom. That may sound a little odd but I'm quite proud of it." She led her down a hallway and opened a door on the right. The apartment was the ground floor of an old farm house; there were three stories with one apartment on each floor. The third floor one was smaller being a converted attic with dormer windows.

Rayna entered the room first so she could see Carolyn's face. She was happy to see that Carolyn looked impressed. The room was very large having been converted from a small bedroom. When the house had been built there was no indoor plumbing. In the center of the room was a huge cast iron claw foot bath tub. There was an oval shower rod hanging from the ceiling surrounding the tub and you could see the shower that had been added to the tub. There were two pedestal sinks along one wall with one long mirror behind the sinks. The toilet was a reproduction of a Victorian water closet with the tank mounted on the wall. Everything was white except for the shower curtain and the curtains on the two sets of double windows on the outside wall. The fabric was cream with small blue and green flowers.

"Laura Ashley?" asked Carolyn.

"Yes. Isn't it great?"

"You two must live at Restoration Hardware."

"It's mostly Teal'c, he's the actual designer. I just do what I'm told. I'm allowed to paint, wall paper if I'm really careful, hand him tools and bring snacks but not much else. I'm not allowed any input as to colors, fabrics, furniture, etc. Which is fine with me, I love living here but if I was on my own I'd paint all the walls white, go to Ikea and Wal-Mart and furnish the place in a day."

Rayna and Carolyn returned to the living room. Mitchell brought a glass of orange juice and handed it to Carolyn. "Jealous?"

"Have you seen the bedrooms?"

"Sure. Which is your favorite, the Tuscan or the Shaker farmhouse?"

"Cam, did you know Teal'c laid those hardwood floors himself? They're gorgeous."

"Yeah, yeah, he's the Martha Stewart of Chulak." In an obvious attempt to focus her attention somewhere else Mitchell took Carolyn by the arm and pulled her into the kitchen almost spilling her juice in the process.

"Carolyn, let's see if Teal'c's got pigs in a blanket?" Mitchell was thrilled to see that Teal'c was stumped. He tried to look as if he was helping by adding. "You know. Cocktail weenies in dough?"

Teal'c decided to ignore Mitchell and brought out a tray which he put on the coffee table.

"Bruschetta with roasted vegetables." Teal'c said in answer to Mitchell's unanswered question.

"Mario Batali?"

"Indeed."

"Dinner?"

"Pork chops Beneventana."

"We'll stay."

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Vala was sprawled on the couch with her head in Daniel's lap. Mitchell and Carolyn were sitting side by side on the love seat across from the couch. Teal'c and Sam were still sitting at the table. The kitchen and living room were connected by a large open arch and flowed together like one large room. There wasn't a separate dining room but a dining area in the living room that held a massive wooden trestle table that easily sat ten people. Sam and Teal'c were talking quietly and finishing their wine while Rayna cleared the table. When she started washing dishes Carolyn offered to help. Her offer was followed by everyone else. Rayna insisted that since she never cooked she always cleaned up. After a few more half-hearted attempts to change her mind they gave up. Everyone was still stuffed from dinner and enjoying vegetating feeling no pressure to interact, they were all close enough that silence didn't bother them. No one felt the need to keep up polite conversation. Landry had sent them off to rest and relax and that was what they were doing.

Daniel pushed Vala's head off of his lap as he stood up and gently rested it back down on the couch cushion. She gave a barely audible moan as her head was moved.

"Any body else interested in coffee?" No one answered so he joined Rayna in the kitchen to make himself a cup or two.

Before the water was boiling Vala sat up saying. "Is there any cake left? If there is would you bring me some darling?"

Daniel raised his eyebrows when Carolyn looked shocked that Vala could even think of food so soon after dinner, especially the feast they'd just finished. Sam caught sight of Carolyn's expression and said. "Don't even think about how much she eats and how little she weighs, it can only lead to jealousy and hate. Take my word for it."

Vala glared at Sam until she added. "But I love her anyway. It's not her fault, metabolism is as metabolism does."

Vala was still sitting up when Daniel returned with his coffee so he sat next to her. She was looking at him expectantly when Rayna handed her a plate with a large slice of cake and a fork. Vala smiled her thanks and took a forkful of cake.

Mitchell looked over at Sam and Teal'c still sitting at the table. "I have to admit that when I heard olive oil and orange cake I wasn't sure what to expect. But it was great. Congrats Teal'c. Sam you may not want to mention the cake to Jack."

Sam smiled in agreement. She usually drank the least of them all so was the designated driver when they got together off base. She had driven Vala and Daniel so they were fine. It only took a few minutes to convince Cam and Carolyn to stay over. Once Carolyn realized that they would have what she thought of as the Italian Room it would have taken a lot to convince her not to stay.

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Dr. Daniel Jackson had never considered himself superstitious. But today as he sat working at his desk in their Library he wasn't sure. Looking up from his translation he saw Vala sitting crossed legged on top of the worktable surrounded by empty Twinkie wrappers, crushed potato chip bags, a half eaten apple and an open box of Thin Mint Girl Scout cookies. Siler was selling cookies for his niece and had turned Vala on to Thin Mints. She was shocked to hear that the cookies were only available once a year so one shelf of the walk-in freezer in the Commissary now holds her stash. Vala's laptop was balanced precariously on her knees with her hair cascading down around her face like a black curtain. Occasionally she would blow a puff of air up to move it out of her eyes, when her hair moved he would catch a glimpse of her face, her tongue sticking out of one side of her mouth as she focused on the screen. He was happy, plain and simple. And scared that admitting it would jinx them.

He continued to stare at her. Vala looked up as if she had felt his gaze. She put her hands on her shoulders and hugged herself tightly. As the laptop slid off she gave him one of her 1000 watt smiles making him forget about jinxes, superstitions, hexes, curses and evil spells.

Daniel didn't think there was any way he could feel better. Then Rayna entered the room.

"Coffee, Daniel?"

"Absolutely. Thanks Rayna."

Rayna put the tray she had in her hands down on the edge of his desk. He poured two cups of coffee and handing one to Vala who had gotten off the table and was standing next to his desk.

"Well, I spoke to Sam and Jack's arranged for another trip to Noxland. They told him that they had some information they wished to share with us. It's set up for the day after tomorrow."

Vala looked at Rayna and said. "I think maybe I'll stay here, you and Daniel should go."

"Vala are you worried about the creepy old man?"

"No Rayna, it's not that. I'm sure I could handle him but that might be a distraction and it isn't as if they are thrilled to be working with us anyway. You and Daniel have the best grasp on the whole thing and too many people might spook them."

"You might be right Vala so Daniel and I will go. But we need to spend the time between now and our visit putting all our data, thoughts and theories together in an organized format. How's your database shaping up?"

"It's getting there, if you and Daniel work with me I'm sure I'll have something workable ready before then."

Vala cleared off a working space on the table, throwing her trash into the waste basket and sorting her files and folders into logical piles. She pulled her laptop over in front of her and opened up the files she was indexing in preparation for adding them to her database.

"Okay guys, we've got a deadline. Let's do this. We need to be ready to pick their little crunchy granola minds." As she spoke Rayna moved to the table and sat on a stool.

"Punishment, revenge, reward, an accident? Darling, what do you think was the idea behind deascending them? Is that even a word 'deascending? Maybe it should be unascending. Or just plain descending. What do you think?"

Daniel answered Vala. "Let's stick with deascending, I think it makes it clearer that they were ascended at one time but then, not so much."

"Daniel. Vala. I think we should assume that it was done on purpose. They may have messed up the actual process but I can't imagine it was an accident."

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Eight hours, six pots of coffee, two pizzas, three boxes of Girl Scout cookies, four apples and one pint of strawberries later.

All three of them heard someone at the door and looked up at the same time. Expecting it to be Teal'c checking to see how they were doing and if Rayna was okay, something he had been doing roughly every two hours, they were surprised to see Jack and Sam standing in the doorway.

"Hi kids. How's it goin? You guys ready to take a trip? The Nox are waiting."

"Jack. We have at least another day. And more than a days worth of preparation before we can go."

"Sorry Danny boy. They called, it's now or, not exactly never, but it's now or not for quite awhile."

"Now? As in right now?"

Rayna asked. "We've been working for quite a long time. Do you think they would wait for us to take a short nap and bathe?"

"The morning will be fine. I just wanted to rattle your chains."

"Jack!"

"Daniel?"

"Thanks for letting us know. You and Sam get lost. Daniel and Rayna need to wrap up their list of questions. I'll make sure they get to bed at a decent hour and we'll see you for breakfast."

Jack nodded and smiled at Vala, turned and headed out the door. Sam stepped in out of the hallway and asked. "Can I help with anything? I'd be glad …"

Before she could finish her offer Jack reached back into the room, took hold of Sam's wrist and pulled her out of the doorway. Saying. "No. No. And, no!"

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Jack walked into the Commissary spotted Vala and Daniel and headed to their table. "Where is everybody?"

Val gave him an exasperated look. "But Sam was with …"

Jack interrupted her before she could finish.

"I'm sure Sam will be here soon, she's never late. What about the rest of them?"

Daniel was writing in a notebook but put down his pen and answered. "Rayna and Teal'c are on their way, they called a few minutes ago. Mitchell should be here any second." As he spoke Mitchell walked in and headed for the food line. Teal'c and Rayna were right behind him. Rayna came and sat with the rest of SG-1 while Teal'c headed to get breakfast.

Vala said hi to Rayna saying. "It is so sweet that Teal'c still gets your food for you. You never do that Daniel."

"Vala, I tried once if you remember. Not a success. You didn't like my choices and insisted that I took baby portions. Plus the staff doesn't make such special efforts unless they know the foods for you. In fact you told me I was useless and ordered me to ignore you if you ever asked me to get food for you again." At first it wasn't clear whether he was angry or annoyed but then he was smiling at Vala with what Mitchell called "googly eyes" Jack called "puppy dog eyes" but Vala insisted was a look of love and devotion.

Everyone but Sam was at the table eating breakfast, laughing and joking together. She had already gotten in the food line before she was spotted by Rayna who waved her over.

'Carter, get a move on. Landry wants to talk to us before we head off to Noxville."

"Good morning to you too, Jack."

Vala started to giggle quietly as Sam and Jack exchanged words. She wondered if they thought any one at the table believed it was the first time they'd seen each other this morning. Though she was constantly surprised by how dense Daniel and Cam could be.

Sam quickly ate her bagel while the rest finished eating and took her coffee with her to the Briefing Room. General Landry was at the head of the table, Jack at the other end, Rayna and Daniel were next to each other with a thick notebook, a pile of photographs, and two large books spread on the table in front of them. Vala, Teal'c, Sam and Mitchell sat on the other side, a little squished together so Rayna and Daniel could have easy access to all their folders, files and notes.

"Well, Jack after you escort Daniel and Rayna to see the Nox are you coming right back or are you going to stay and visit?"

"I'll head back right after I saw hi to Lya. Very nice people but they make me a little skittish, Hank."

Rayna spoke up. "I find them silly and pretentious. And what's with the twigs in the hair, Back to Nature, Noble Savage gestalt? Once you see their cities it's pretty obvious how sophisticated their culture must be. Sometimes I wonder if my people were kicked out, or down, because we are judgmental, smart asses who aren't serious enough."

"But your people are kind and good hearted. I don't think you judge people, you're understanding and forgiving."

"Thank you Daniel. I appreciate your kind words."

Jack added. "You have one of the most important attributes in all the galaxies, one missing in both the Nox and the Ancients. Though amazingly enough, not missing in the Asgard."

Teal'c asked. "What is that O'Neill?"

"A frigging sense of humor!" After a stunned moment they all laughed.

"Thank you Jack. That means a lot to me. We have many faults but, whatever else; my people are very good at having fun."

Landry spoke over the laughter. "Let's pull ourselves together here. Talk to us Daniel. Rayna."

"Our most basic question is who my people are or were. If they had once been ascended were they simply a group of Ancients who were punished, banished by the rest. Were we Nox who couldn't control our desire to help others, to interfere with life on the corporeal plane and banished for our "sins"? Was our collective amnesia a mistake or a sympathetic attempt to pervert us learning of our loss? Were we punished as a group for the mistakes of a few? Or did we band together in disagreement about the basic principles of truth and right. Why did our amnesia continue? Or was it an unintended side effect of the deascension process. Perhaps we were the first to be cast out."

"I've been thinking about my own amnesia. It appeared that I was left with no memories but they were simply hidden beneath the surface and regained with the help and support of people who wanted and needed me to remember. Friends who knew what my memories were. If all of Rayna's people lost their memories there would be no one to assist them in recalling their lives."

Landry stood up, effectively ending the meeting. "I hope that you're successful in finding answers. Best of luck. See you soon Jack."

As they walked out of the Briefing Room Vala unobtrusively took Daniel's hand saying "I'll walk you to the Gate Room darling."

Teal'c walked closely to Rayna but they didn't touch. Sam said goodbye to Jack and walked away with Mitchell. In the gate Room Vala gave Daniel a quick kiss on the lips and pushed him towards the ramp. Teal'c gave Rayna a brief nod and then a smile which Jack saw, making him feel happy that Teal'c now had someone important in his life. It felt good to see the man smile.

Jack was the last one through the Gate and he waved at Teal'c and Vala. "Toodles, kids. See ya on the flip side."


	47. Chapter 47

Jack was sitting at the table when Sam entered the Briefing Room.

"Carter! What's up? Do you know why Daniel summoned us here?"

"I think he and Rayna have some information they want to share with everyone. They were pretty excited when they got back from seeing the Nox. And Daniel was particularly insistent that you be here, Jack."

"Yeah. That's got me a little nervous."

Teal'c and Mitchell walked in together and looked around the table.

"Yo, guys. You know what's got Jackson so stoked?"

Jack was sitting next to Sam. When Teal'c sat on her other side Cam took the chair next to Teal'c.

"Rayna is also quite excited. I think that she and Daniel Jackson had a profitable visit with the Nox."

At that point Vala ran into the room bouncing up and down on her toes with a huge smirk on her face. Her eyes were dancing and she looked like she was working hard to keep from exploding with exuberance.

"You look way too pleased with yourself, Princess. Spill! What's going on? What do you know?"

Vala laughed and covered her mouth with her hand shaking her head no. She took the chair across from Jack, still bouncing. Jack stared at Vala trying to decide the best interrogation methods to use on her but before he got to the good ones Rayna and Daniel stepped into the room. Rayna had what might be described as a subtle bounce to her step though not as pronounced as Vala. She was wearing a new tee shirt, white with a picture of a Powerpuff Girl on the front and the words Girl Power on the back.

Mitchell gave Rayna an exaggerated salute. "Girls rule! Good choice Rayna. Buttercup really kicks ass."

Rayna and Vala high fived each other while the rest of them looked blankly at Mitchell and the two women. Cam stood up and gestured to Rayna to take his chair next to Teal'c.

"Thank you, Cam."

Mitchell walked around the table to sit next to Vala, as he pulled the chair out from the table Daniel grabbed the back and pulling it closer to Vala's chair sat next to her. Looking up at Mitchell he smiled.

"Thanks Mitchell. Appreciate it."

Cam rolled his eyes and took the chair next to Daniel.

"Daniel?"

"Jack?"

Rayna looked at the two men and you could see on her face that she was trying to read their emotions. Her body suddenly relaxed and she smiled at both of them. Jack thought she actually winked at him but wasn't sure.

"Daniel has kindly suggested that I explain what we found."

"I thought that you might find her account less pedantic than mine."

"That means less dry and boring, Jack."

Daniel wrinkled his nose at Vala in annoyance.

"Thanks, Vala."

"You're welcome Jack."

Sam smiled saying. "That's enough you two, let the woman speak. You can pick on Daniel later."

Mitchell muttered. "Hope to God there aren't any power point slides."

"I want to start by thanking Daniel and Vala for all their help, for all of SG-1's help. And many people at SGC. People like Rose and her staff. They found similar elements in our architecture and the interior design of Asgard ships. And though I'm quite skeptical I respect Rose's judgment, and if she says there are commonalities between our clothes and those of the Nox I'll suck it up and take her word for it."

Sam was sitting back and watching Rayna as she spoke. Everyone at the table was listening intently and smiling at her humorous asides. Rayna was obviously passionate about her findings and just as obviously cared about her listeners, she wanted to share her ideas and knowledge with them. Sam remembered how comfortable it was to talk with Rayna's people in the Inn. Vala told them then that empaths don't read minds; they don't want to trick or manipulate you. They are truly interested in what you feel, in what you have to say. Above all else their interest and concern for people is genuine. Sam enjoyed seeing her friends emotionally engaged by Rayna, especially Jack. He hadn't been able to spend much time with her and Sam knew he was concerned that Teal'c had gotten involved too quickly. Jack enjoyed her company but was reserving final judgment, just as he had with Vala until he saw for himself how much she loved Daniel and how happy he was. At this point in time Vala could do no wrong, seeing a happy relaxed Space Monkey meant a lot to Jack.

Sam was listening to Rayna's words also but she took the time to look around the table at her friends who were, for all intents and purposes, her family. It had been a long time since she'd seen Jack so enthralled at a debriefing. Mitchell was listening to Rayna and enjoying the palpable feeling of team camaraderie in the room. Teal'c was beaming as Rayna talked, Sam thought he was the least interested in the topic and most interested in the speaker. Rayna didn't need his interest in her research just his interest in her happiness, which she had. Rayna had no interest in warfare or any kind of fighting, but she was interested in Teal'c. Aside from the fact that they were both aliens they appeared to have little in common, but they complemented each other. Much as she and Jack did, they were both military but were very different. Above all else she and Jack and Teal'c and Rayna respected each other and respected their work.

Daniel and Vala were a different story. Sam saw that while she was looking at the others Daniel's chair had been pulled back from the table and Vala was sitting sideways across his lap. It struck her as funny that the reality of Vala sitting on Daniel's lap was so different from what it might sound like. It wasn't really sexual, perhaps because Vala was so small she balanced on his legs rather than leaning back against his body and he didn't need to keep his arms around her to hold her in place. She reminded Sam of a small bird perched on a branch. In the beginning Sam wasn't sure if a relationship between them could ever work, there was an obvious physical attraction on both sides no matter how Daniel might deny it, but though opposites might attract she worried that they were too opposite. The more she got to know Vala she realized that the two of them were in fact the opposite of opposites attract.

Vala's public persona was a shield to help Vala deal with all that life had thrown at her. She knew how to use her beauty to achieve her ends. Much like Daniel used his puppy dog eyes and shy, helpless, a little geeky but basically gorgeous scientist act on women throughout SGC and two galaxies. And they certainly had very similar abandonment issues.

Vala was as intelligent, if not more than, Daniel and as interested in learning. It had been quite awhile since Sam was surprised at how quick Vala was at picking up science and technology; she had come to rely on Vala's intuitive insights. Vala truly did think out of the box. She had a way of seeing a problem and being able to pinpoint what needed to be fixed. Vala might not have the skill and knowledge needed to do the fixing, but Sam usually did.

Cam swore that she could fly any space ship out there, and though it took piloting skills it also took an understanding of the basic scientific concepts underlying the necessary systems.

Under Daniel's tutelage she had become something of a scholar, he was still impressed with her talent for learning new languages and frequently bragged about her research skills. He liked to take credit for her expertise but Sam always thought that while he had certainly inspired and motivated Vala all he had really done was expose her to the possibilities of a different sort of life. She had gained her expertise through hard work and dedication. And though Daniel didn't enjoy hearing it Thomas Graham deserved a lot of credit for encouraging her intellectual growth.

Vala had become less focused on fun and entertainment and Daniel more so which was an improvement for them both and now another area of similarity. Sam had never shared her fantasy with the two of them, but sometimes when she observed them working together in the field, their office or their library she imagined them to be two old archeologists arguing over an ancient tablet. It never failed to make her chuckle when she thought about them starting to look alike the way it was said an old married couple or a person and their pet often did. Maybe when they were a lot older she might tell Vala, but Sam really didn't think she ever would. At least as long as Vala was still strong enough to take her out.

Sam's musing were suddenly disturbed when she heard Rayna say they'd discovered the Nox had some sort of regular Sub Rosa contact with the Ancients.

The room was suddenly silent.

It was Cam who spoke first. "What the hell? What's up with that? Is that fair, Jackson?"

"Daniel?"

"I'm fine Jack. I got over it. I'm just glad they were able and willing to help us. Obviously the Ancients agreed to it. I think I'm supposed to be grateful for that." Daniel had taken his glasses off and was rubbing the bridge of his nose as he spoke.

"And just how did they help you guys?" asked Sam. She put the idea of a secret Nox Ancient collusion out of her mind and waited to hear the details from Rayna and Daniel of what they'd learned.


	48. Chapter 48

Rayna started to explain how their discussion with the Nox had progressed. "We are returning in two days to try and clarify the information we have regarding my people. It'll take us a few days to construct our questions. The way it works is we ask the Nox questions and they somehow communicate with one or more Ancients and generate answers or at least partial answers that they present to us. It is a very awkward process; I've never dealt with anything like it. Perhaps Daniel could give you an idea of what's involved."

"It's a strange combination of twenty questions and the children's game where you use warm, hot, hotter, cool, etc. as the person gets closer to finding an object or making a correct guess."

Vala jumped in. "We had a similar game but it was used to tease a child and not really acceptable when dealing with adults. Those Nox think quite a lot of themselves, IMHO."

Teal'c translated Vala's comment for Jack and Daniel. "In my humble opinion."

Rayna continued. "We asked if my people had been ascended and were told that we could continue to accept that as true. They aren't so good with the straight answers. We asked if all or just some of them had been sent back and they said that depended on exactly what we meant by some. We tried to ask if we were related to the Nox and they responded "many people are similar and what had we meant by related?" We couldn't ask them why we had been punished but they would tell us if we were correct if could be more specific in our questions. Eventually after a great deal of intellectual and semantic bargaining we ended up with the following. At one time my people had all been ascended, they were unable to restrain themselves from interfering in their former plane of existence, they were all empaths which led to what they felt was a need to help people and they may or may not be connected to the Nox. It was an extremely tiring experience."

Daniel added. "It certainly was. But I'm convinced that now we've got a start on how to develop a strategy as to how we should ask for answers we'll have a better chance of learning the truth."

Vala spoke up. "I've offered them my expertise at twisting the truth, setting up marks and getting them to provide what you want while having them think it was all their idea, manipulating the truth and just plain general conniving. And I'd like to stick it to both the Nox and the Ancients."

"I believe that your skills, much as I disapprove of them on moral grounds, could be helpful in this case. And appreciated."

"Thank you darling. You put that very nicely."

Looking at all the team members around the table Rayna said. "So we will be focusing on coming up with our questions today and all of tomorrow. Please offer any suggestions you might have regarding what questions we want answered, how to phrase those questions, and so forth. We'll be working in the Library so please join us whenever you can and …"

Vala broke in. "Bring food. Please! These two never get hungry. It's only when they run out of coffee that they agree to hitting the Commissary."

"You can all go now, but keep me informed. If you guys want me to talk to the Nox let me know. But I suspect I wouldn't get any where with them more than you guys." Jack stood up as he spoke and headed out of the room.

Sam looked at Jack and nodded. He looked back at her with a question in his eyes.

"Sir, I think that you meant to order everyone to meet for dinner tonight in order to discuss Rayna and Daniel's progress."

"Oh, yes, of course. What she said. I'll order pizza and we'll meet in Sam's lab. Let's go people. You've got things to do, people to see." Jack shooed them out of the room with his hands.

Soon only Sam and Jack remained. In response to Sam's glare, "What? It was your idea, it makes sense it be in your lab."

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Sam was sitting at a stool in her lab when Jack arrived with a stack of three pizza boxes; Teal'c and Mitchell were right behind him. Mitchell had a six-pack of Coke and another six-pack of Diet Coke which he put on top of the counter next to a white refrigerator. Teal'c was carrying paper plates and napkins which he laid down next to the soda. Jack had cleared off the surface in front of Sam by shoving papers, folders and books into a pile over to one side. Sam had begun to protest when he reached out and started to push her work into a pile but gave up and started to help him by moving items to the top of a nearby filing cabinet.

Jack was opening the lid of the top box when Rayna came into the room. She reached over and lifted the box top higher so she could peer in and check out the pie.

"Yes, there are anchovies on that one." He made a face when he said the word anchovies. Under his breath he muttered. "Ugly little dead fish."

Vala and Daniel were right behind Rayna. Vala held a large white bakery box tied up in string. She walked over towards the counter where the soda bottles were and gently placed the box down.

Vala announced to the room. "Amaretto chocolate cheesecake!"

Jack flipped the lid of the top box completely back and put it down on the newly cleared counter space. He opened the next box and did the same. Sam looked at the toppings seeing half pepperoni half mushroom and smiled; he hadn't forgotten her preference for pepperoni and Daniel's for mushrooms. The third pie would be Caesar's House Combo Special which included hamburger, sausage, green peppers, mushrooms, onions and fresh mozzarella with a small container of Jalapeños for Mitchell.

Teal'c had two plates in his hand and was walking towards Rayna when Jack said. "That's certainly a match made in Heaven."

The room was suddenly silent when Jack added. "Teal'c and Rayna. It's strange to find two people out of such a small group that like anchovies on their pizza. Actually I think it's strange to find anyone who likes anchovies on their pizza!"

Vala grabbed a napkin and opening the third box pulled out a slice, folded it over lengthwise and put the small end into her mouth. She somehow managed to agree with Jack while chewing.

Soon everyone had pizza and Mitchell was filling beverage orders. Sam and Jack were sitting next to each other on stools pulled up to her work table. Teal'c was standing next to a desk where Rayna was sitting. Vala was sitting Indian style on top of another counter and Daniel stood next to her leaning against the counter. After passing out soda Mitchell, holding a plate heaped with three slices of pizza and the container of Jalapeños in one hand and a can of Coke in the other leaned against a counter across the room and slid down until he was sitting on the floor with his back against a cabinet. He took a swig out of the can and sat it on the floor. He opened the container and using his fingers lifted out peppers, spreading them on a slice before lifting it up to his mouth.

"I'm starving and exhausted."

"Mitchell, why are you tired? We've been doing all the work."

"Jackson, for a moron like me, trying to think of clever ways to ask questions is very taxing. Especially when I don't understand the questions I'm trying to ask. Give me a break, man."

Jack stepped in to defend Cam. "I know what you're saying Mitchell. They really don't get it that we really don't get it."

Sam allowed herself an almost inaudible sigh and rolled her eyes upward. Sometimes she got tired of both of them acting as if they were dumb. As a fellow graduate of the Air Force Academy she knew that it was a difficult feat to graduate, especially in the top of the class. She'd peeked at Jack and Mitchell's files and knew they'd both graduated in the top ten percent. And someday she wouldn't be able to resist exposing Mitchell's dirty little secret. Before attending the Academy he'd gotten a B.A. in Modern English Poetry from UC-Berkeley. Sam had been patiently holding on to it, waiting for the most effective moment to expose him.

"Well, as hostess, I suppose you could argue that it should be me that gets the ball rolling. What do you have so far for questions?"

Daniel put his plate down on the counter and before starting to speak he reached back and slapped Vala's hand which had crept over towards his slice of pizza. "Don't even think about it, my dearest."

Vala simply laughed, picked up his pizza and began chewing. Ignoring her he walked over to the worktable with an empty plate and took two slices out of the box, one with mushrooms for himself and a second one with pepperoni for Vala. He started to talk as he walked back and put the plate of pizza on top of the now empty plate. Vala reached down and wrapped her arms around his chest from behind, gave him a quick hug and picked up her can of soda.

"I think we've got off to a good start. Vala's been helping by pretending to be the Ancients and seeing how evasive and obfuscating she can be."

"Always willing to help the cause, darling."

Rayna added. "I really do appreciate it. That type of simulation is very helpful. I must admit you did an excellent job of being obnoxious and condescending."

Vala smiled, looking very pleased with herself. Then she got a nervous look on her face and asked Daniel. "That was a compliment wasn't it?"

Before he could answer Rayna assured her that was certainly how she had meant it. The grin returned to Vala's face, she took a slug of Coke and picked up the pepperoni slice off of Daniel's plate.

"We decided to start with the Nox. We want to know if Rayna's people were a group of Nox or a separate race. They admitted that they may have been similar to the Nox so we hope to force their hand by asking if they meant similar like a wolf to a dog or more like a wolf to a deer or a wolf to a tree."

Vala explained. "It's usually better to offer choices. You start off with their admittance that there was a similarity with the Nox and then ask them to categorize it by choosing an analogy."

Daniel continued. "We figured next we would ask if every single one of them refused to not break the rules…"

Rayna broke in. "Remember we decided we should use disregard the guidelines instead of break the rules."

"Next we'll ask if that was the first time anyone was deascended. If they say it was, then we'll want to know if they screwed it up. But we'll ask about unforeseen consequences such as the permanent loss of memory, in this case all the memories of one race. Followed up by an attempt to determine if helping them regain their memories would have been considered interfering or was the memory loss designed to prevent a repeat of their misbehavior or was it simply beyond their abilities to fix what might be considered a mistake. I'd like to know what we felt about the whole process. Were we happy to be deascended or did we think our concerns should be the concerns of all. Did we try and fight for what we thought was right and just. We are still a little shaky as to how we'll ask the 64,000 question. Who are we?"

Rayna held up her hand in a fist and put up one finger for each point. "One, are we Nox? Two, were we all deascended as a group, and were we the first to ever be deascended? Three, did we lose our memories and never regain them on purpose? Four, what did we think of what was going to happen to us? And last, but not least. Five, just who the hell are/were we?"

Daniel said. "That sounds right to me. I'm not confident as to exactly what kind of answers we'll get. But we'll give it the old college try!"

Vala jumped down off the counter after wiping her hands and face with a napkin. "Time for cheesecake?" She looked around but no one appeared interested. "Fine. I'll take mine with. Come on Daniel. You too, Rayna. We need to do some more polishing on those questions."

Vala took an empty plate and unties the string on the bakery box. She looked around for a knife and settled on a letter opener on Sam's desk. She cut a very large wedge of cheesecake and slid it onto the plate.

"Don't worry. I've got utensils in the Library. Come on you two, get with the program. Time's a wasting. Cotton don't pick itself."

Daniel looked at Mitchell. He blamed him for what he thought of as Vala's country slang. "Enough with the hound dogs and the June bugs and …"

Sam looked closely at Mitchell as she protested. "But Daniel, those sayings are almost "purty" enough to be poetry. Don't ya think Cam?" She was pleasantly surprised by the look of fear on his face.

Vala walked out of the room with her plate of cheesecake, Daniel and Rayna close behind. As they left Rayna turned and waved at Teal'c saying. "Love you. I'll call."


	49. Chapter 49

_**Only one more chapter and an epilogue to go.**_

Daniel and Rayna had returned from meeting with the Nox. Vala was waiting at the bottom of the ramp and could tell by the quirky smile on Daniel's mouth that they had gotten their answers. Before he made it to the end of the ramp she had thrown herself at him her legs wrapped around his waist and her arms around his neck. She had a huge grin on her face asking for confirmation.

"Success?"

In answer he took her face between his hands and kissed her. As their kiss deepened Daniel attempted to finish walking down the ramp. It looked like they were going to fall over when Teal'c put his hands on Daniel's shoulders and stopped them from moving. They pulled apart and Vala slid onto the floor. Rayna was right behind Daniel and though she didn't jump on Teal'c she did put her hand on his forearm and squeeze. Smiling Teal'c gently guided her to the bottom of the ramp and headed out of the Gate Room.

"Rayna will meet with you in two hours." He nodded at his two friends. "Vala Mal Duran. Daniel Jackson."

"We'll see you in the lab. Two hours." Smiling at Rayna and Teal'c as they left the room, Daniel took hold of Vala's hand and they followed the other couple.

"Well, Daniel, what do you think we should do while we wait? SG-12 brought back a very interesting tablet this morning. Shall we get started on the translation, Darling?"

Daniel gave her a look that said I'm going to pretend that you never said that. Once they were out of the Gate Room he started walking briskly towards their quarters pulling Vala along behind him. At this point Vala was laughing and the more she laughed the more quickly Daniel walked. They were headed into what could only be considered a run when they reached their door. Daniel opened the door with his card and they practically fell into the room. By now they were both laughing and pulling at each other's clothes with little success.

"Stop, Daniel. This isn't working. I'll stand still and you take off my clothes and then we'll switch places."

"Sounds like a plan." Daniel stopped and looked at her or rather her clothes as if trying to figure out how long it would take to remove them. Daniel realized that she was barefooted, something he hadn't noticed when she met him in the Gate Room.

He nodded and pulled Vala's t-shirt up over the arms she had raised above her head. Seeing that she had nothing on under her shirt Daniel stopped and stared at her naked torso.

"You know Vala, I'm really quite happy that you're in love with me."

"Is that what you think is going on, science boy?" She stepped back and unbuttoned the top of her pants. After slowly pulling down the zipper her pants fell to the floor ending up like a puddle around her feet. Once he realized that she wasn't wearing anything underneath Daniel picked her up and headed to their bed muttering "Minx".

As Vala's back hit the bed she cried out. "Daniel! Glasses!"

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Vala was sitting up in bed with her back against the headboard. She was wearing Daniel's black tee-shirt which looked like a short dress. Daniel was naked and lying on his stomach with his head across her lap. He was in that fuzzy space between asleep and awake, Vala looked at him and saw the almost infinitesimal twitch of his lips that happened right before he woke. She leaned down and kissed the top of his head whispering "I'm quite happy that you're in love with me."

Daniel rolled over and opened his eyes. This time she leaned down and kissed him on the lips. Before he was awake enough to respond she turned so she was sitting on the edge of the bed. His head slipped off her lap in the process.

"Hey! What's going on?"

Now standing on the floor she walked towards the bathroom. Over her shoulder she said. "Shower. Dress. Rayna & Teal'c."

Daniel rolled over groaning. He was excited about what they'd found out from the Nox, but right now he'd rather stay in bed, especially if he could convince Vala to join him.

A voice could be heard through the bathroom door. "No darling. I'm not coming back to bed. I'll be out in five minutes then it's your turn. We're already late."

Daniel groaned again and decided it wouldn't hurt to shut his eyes for just a few seconds. Ten minutes later Vala was standing over him and shaking him by the shoulders.

"Now, Daniel. It's time." He looked up and saw her wearing dark blue sweat pants and a loose red tee-shirt.

Squinting his eyes he asked. "Are you wearing any underwear?"

"That's for me to know and you to find out. But not until after our discussion with Rayna and Teal'c."

Daniel closed his eyes imagining what she might or rather might not be wearing. Vala shook him again and he dragged himself to the side of the bed and stumbled his way to the shower.

Standing under the warm water attempting to wake up Daniel started thinking about their relationship and how different his life had become. Her nightmares were less frequent and less violent; his bouts of guilt ridden depression also less frequent and shorter. They were both still reckless and driven to be in control of all aspects of their lives. But they were there for each other. If the situation with the first Super Gate happened now he would have listened to her and they would have gone together, he was convinced that they would have then been able to ring back in time. They also helped each other come to grips with their regrets and mistakes, to make the leap of faith that they were not ultimately responsible for all the bad things that had happened to the people they loved. It was still a work in progress but Daniel knew little by little they would allow themselves to be happy. They still fought and argued but that was what made him happiest. They now argued about their work and that was one of the things he remembered most about his parents. His parents were passionate, caring, strong willed people. Daniel knew that they loved him and each other. He actually enjoyed listening to them argue, he learned a lot about logic and rhetoric in addition to archeology. His parents disagreed and criticized each other regarding interpretations, techniques, methodology, etc. but never denigrated each other. The first time he flashed back to hearing his parents when he and Vala argued he knew they would always be together.

Over the past few weeks Sam had noticed that at times when Daniel and Vala were disagreeing about the exact wording of a translation or something similar just for a moment an odd look would cross his face. She began to look for it trying to interpret its meaning. The only description she came up with was that he looked pleased. It had no correlation to the actual discussion; it didn't have anything to do his winning or their agreeing on a compromise. Sam tried to explain it to Jack and failed, she'd resolved that the next time he was at SGC she would make sure he witnessed Daniel's behavior. His only suggestion was that Daniel was proud of Vala and happy that she had thrown herself and her considerable intellect into learning about things that were important to him. And now they were important to her also, important enough to fight about. They both liked to be right maybe it meant more when your opponent was someone you considered an equal.

"It's sort of like when you and McKay get started and I feel jealous. You and he share something that I won't ever be able to. There may not be an attraction between you, but there is a spark. I can tell that you're enjoying yourself working with someone who's your equal."

Sam started to feel guilty that she could make Jack feel like that. But they she got a flash of empathy telling him. "Maybe it's like you and Cameron talking about flying. I'm a pilot and a good one. Just not as good as the two of you. And I'm not in love with flying, that's something you have in common with other people that I can't share. So I certainly don't need to apologize for Rodney unless you need to apologize for a lot of flyboys. Cam and Sheppard are just the latest in a long line."

Jack was taken aback. Then he had to admit that her words made him feel better. After thinking about it for a minute he said. "Maybe Daniel and Vala are just lucky enough to share an all consuming passion. You told me your theories that they were a case of like attracting like, in fact, even their neuroses seem to mesh."

They continued to talk about Daniel and Vala, Sam's theories and observations, comparing the other couple to themselves. All of a sudden Jack got an inspired look.

"His parents! They worked together the same way as the two of them do now."

Sam smiled and nodded in agreement. "I think you might have something there. But enough of them, let's concentrate on us." Jack always did whatever Sam thought was a good idea and he was more than happy to comply.

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Teal'c and Rayna were sitting at the worktable in Daniel's and Vala's lab. She was writing in a notebook. It wasn't clear if Teal'c was meditating or just nodding off. From Rayna's smile and affectionate glance it seemed obvious that he was close to falling asleep. She had decided to remain silent and see if his head would hit the table when he actually fell asleep, but Daniel and Vala made enough noise when they arrived that Teal'c opened his eyes and sat up straighter on his stool. Rayna waited until the two of them were sitting at the table before she started.

"Okay, we need a plan of attack."

Teal'c and Daniel looked as if Rayna was speaking another language and one of the few that they didn't understand.

Vala clapped and bounced up and down a few times. "Excellent!" Looking at "the boys" she explained.

"We want to prepare how we're going to reveal what we learned to the rest of them. The meeting is set for later this afternoon, and I'm very happy to say that Jack will be here."

Out of character as it was, Daniel loudly said "yes!" with the appropriate arm gesture conveying his excitement.

"I knew you'd like that, darling. We want to present our findings in a clear, concise, non-boring way." Vala looked pointedly at Daniel when she said non-boring.

Rayna continued. "We received the answers to our questions in dribs and drabs, in no logical order, often having to ask the same question three or more different ways before we could drag any information out of those ..." As Rayna hesitated Vala tried to help her fill in the blank.

"Cretins? Morons? Overage hippies? Earnest yet condescending fairies and elves?"

Rayna laughed. "Lya does sort of remind me of Tinkerbelle."

Rayna picked up her notebook saying. "I've written down the questions we said we wanted answered and I think we should repeat them in the same order explaining the answers as we go through the list. Do you think we should start with some background information, explanations of how we arrived at our questions? Maybe a little bit about what a pain in the ass the whole process was? Maybe some small note of appreciation for their cooperation? And then the coup de grace will be delivered by Dr. Daniel Jackson!"

"I think we have our plan."

"Thank you Daniel."

When the four of them started work on their presentation they were all up to speed.

Rayna had discussed the results of their trip with Teal'c. They had gone directly to his room, after returning through the Gate, for their "discussion" which soon developed into what Rayna called "fun and games"; she still kept a notebook of Earthisms and slang. Rayna was very proud of her command of colloquial English and a lot of people at SGC assumed that she was from Earth America in particular. Rayna heard Vala still make mistakes, though she usually got the content and intent correct her mistakes were more like she was literally translating each English word by itself and then combining them. She had also noticed that Vala, unlike Rayna, was not obsessive compulsive.

In a clichéd, stereotypical male move Daniel had rolled over and started to doze off after making love. Vala kept poking him in the back until he rolled over to face her. She made him tell her all the details of their question and answer session with the Nox and what Vala called their Ascended confidential informant or snitch.

Rayna and Daniel had been met at the Gate by Lya who led them to a clearing outside of a small cave. The clearing was in the middle of pink and white flowering trees that reminded Daniel of the Cherry Blossom Festival in D.C. There were wooden benches and chair shaped rocks placed in a semi-circle facing the cave. Lya sat on one of the rocks while Daniel and Rayna each took a bench. The carving on the benches reminded Rayna of her home which supported her theory that she and her people had at one time been Nox. Lya greeted them and as they exchanged pleasantries a figure walked out of the cave joining them in the clearing. It was another Nox, a short, stout young man with the typical Nox hair adornments. Rayna could hear Vala saying "elf", but after a quick look at his ears and picturing Orlando Bloom in her mind she thought "munchkin". She hoped that the smile of amusement on her face would pass for friendly as Lya introduced him as Mar. Rayna continued to hear Vala inside her head making sarcastic sassy comments and at times during the discussions that followed Rayna had to work hard to contain herself. She also realized that it had been a good decision to leave Vala behind. Even if Vala didn't make any comments Rayna knew that she'd be thinking them and even if Rayna wasn't an empath she'd be able to figure out what Vala was thinking. The practice sessions Vala had led turned out to be invaluable. She and Daniel were prepared with alternate questions and alternate approaches. Vala had taught them well, they weren't thrown when they encountered resistance they stayed calm and focused on the information they wanted and not the questions themselves. Taking a different tack often resulted in answers. The way the Nox structured the encounter seemed odd to Daniel and Rayna. After coming up with a question that appeared to be suitable for consideration the King of the Munchkins would enter the cave and upon his return would offer an answer. Not necessarily a comprehensive answer, but an answer just the same.

The session was exhausting and seemed to go on for ever until the Nox and their "snitch" had provided as much information as they ever would. Which was actually more than Daniel and Rayna had ever hoped for and in addition due to Vala's instruction and guidance they completed their task in a few hours. It took less time than the initial meeting and was ten times more productive.

As they took their leave of Mar and walked to the Gate with Lya Rayna could feel how tightly wound Daniel was. He was working hard not to show his excitement, his body never moved but to Rayna it was as if he was bouncing up and down like Vala.

"Piece of cake, Daniel."

"Indeed!"

They were both laughing as they stepped through the Gate.


	50. Chapter 50

_**This is almost finished. All that's left is the epilogue.**_

Teal'c sat next to Rayna who was at the head of the table in the SGC Debriefing Conference Room; Mitchell was next to Teal'c and across from them sat Jack and Sam.

Mitchell was the first to speak. "Where's General Landry?"

Jack answered. "He's going to wait and read the mission report. Ya gotta love those mission reports." Cam started to blush as he realized Jack was teasing him.

Mitchell continued. "Then where's the dynamic duo?"

Rayna spoke up. "Daniel is wrapping up some audio-visual aids for our presentation." She smiled at the face Jack made when she'd said audio-visual.

Jack smiled back. "So Rayna, now that you've got your answers are you going back home?" He was asking Rayna but kept his eyes on Teal'c trying to read his expression or, actually, his lack of expression.

"Well, the General has kindly agreed to let me stay on at SGC. I'll continue to work with Sam on my out of phase abilities and Daniel kindly told General Landry that I'd be of help to him and Vala in their work. So you're going to be stuck with me for a little while longer."

Teal'c quietly added. "Otherwise we would be moving to Chulak."

Jack was a little taken aback, not because of what he had said but by the obvious emotion behind his words. Emotion that Teal'c didn't bother to hide. Jack was overcome with the need to talk to Sam. It appeared that both Teal'c and Daniel were emotionally invested in another person. And not only that, they were happy! He wasn't sure he recognized his SGC. Things were getting curiouser and curiouser.

"So, are you going to join SG-1?"

Rayna laughed at his question. "Jack? Are you kidding? Do I look like I'm interested in being involved with the military?" She pointed at her clothes and continued to laugh. He had vaguely noticed that she didn't wear BDUs but jeans, and brightly colored tee shirts. He looked closely at her and something looked familiar with her outfit but he couldn't figure it out. Then it hit him. 1969! Cassie had been reading a magazine a few weeks ago and a photo of a model caught his eye. He asked her why they had old photos in a new magazine. Cassie had given him a supercilious look and explained that it was called retro chic.

"Trust me. I'm more than happy to stay her and keep the home fires burning. Mya's the one you have to watch out for. She's caught up with your pet shrinks for now, but if she ever decides she wants to go off-world I doubt you'll be able to stop her."

Jack look concerned and Sam jumped in. "So she's enjoying her work? I heard that they'd been very successful with their training and counseling."

"Absolutely. You should take some time and have them show you what they've accomplished. The First Lady is thrilled, as is the VA. Their work with PTSD has been groundbreaking."

Sam made a mental note to follow up with Mya.

"Plus, Jason and Thomas are thinking about taking a vacation in Vermont so there might be a wedding soon."

Mitchell and Sam spoke at the same time. "Great!"

Jack looked a little confused but counted on Sam to explain later.

The door opened and Vala came in with Daniel right behind her. She had a laptop which she connected to the projector and Daniel laid a thick file folder on the table as he sat down next to Rayna. Vala had pushed Teal'c's chair to the side and pulled a chair between him and Rayna. Rayna, Daniel and Vala were now in position to start the presentation.

Jack noticed Daniel staring at Vala which wasn't unusual; he frequently caught them looking at each other. Daniel with a happy goofy smile and puppy dog eyes. Vala with an incredibly serious expression, no smiles or grins just a calm serene look. But this time Daniel had an almost surprised look.

Daniel was watching Vala as she smiled and greeted everyone. Her exuberance was infectious and he could feel the mood of the room lighten. What he was thinking was what an amazing woman she was, that she constantly surprised him by her inner strength.

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To look at Vala you'd never guess that she'd woken up out of a nightmare at 1:30 that morning and hadn't gone back to sleep. Daniel always knew when she was having a bad dream. He could feel her body stiffen and her head would shake back and forth as if she was screaming no, though she never made a sound. He would watch her until he saw the slight twitch of her mouth which meant she was waking up. Daniel was careful to appear to be sound asleep. At first he'd tried to comfort her when she woke, but Vala would be upset that she'd disturbed his sleep. She became so agitated that he felt guilty and that was making her feel worse. Now he would pretend to sleep, listening for the bathroom door and then the door to their room closing behind her. Often he would go back to sleep but just as often he would sit at the desk and work. He'd stay in his pajamas in case she returned before morning. When he heard her at the door he'd have enough time to turn out the desk lamp and return to bed. He was always able to fall back asleep once he felt the weight of her body on the mattress. But some nights hours would have passed and she hadn't returned. He would throw on a pair of jeans and a t-shirt and walk barefoot though the halls of SGC looking for her. He always started at the Commissary standing outside of the door listening for her voice. If he didn't hear her he would stick his head into the room. One of the staff would notice him and if Vala was in the kitchen they would nod and point, if not they would tell him their best guess as to where she might be. He never let her know that he was looking for her. He had his own nightmares of her sitting alone somewhere crying and reliving her nightmare. Once he heard or saw her and knew she was safe he could go back to bed and sleep. Vala's friends helped him, joining in an intimate conspiracy for the sake of his sanity. If she wasn't eating and she wasn't visiting one of her many friends on base he would check the gym. When all else failed he would contact the Marines at the front gate. Vala received a text message every day with the location of that night's floating crap game. They would check and let Daniel know if she was playing. They never told him the location but if she was at the game he knew she was in safe hands and could go back to their room.

Last night she'd had a particularly bad nightmare and when he woke again at 4:30 and realized that she wasn't back he got dressed and made the rounds of the base. During his travels he would end up spending time with her friends and was shocked one day to realize how many new people he'd met during the past weeks, people who were the infrastructure of SGC. He may have met them through Vala but discovered he'd made friends of his own. Last night he'd had coffee in the Commissary discussing in depth a documentary on the History channel with one of the janitors who was a Civil War Reenactor, and visited the guards at the entrance to the Mountain. Daniel was determined to be allowed to play craps with them at least once in his life but the Marines continued to laugh at his request. But Daniel was convinced that they weren't laughing as hard as they used to, which gave him hope. It was close to 6:00 when he found her in the library working on a translation. Daniel pretended that he'd just gotten up and was looking for her to go to breakfast. He asked her when she'd gotten up and she lied saying about twenty minutes ago. Daniel simply let her lie; if it made her feel less guilty it was fine with him. It wasn't like he'd never hidden his pain with a few judicious lies. He reached out his arms grabbing her and holding her tight. Vala hugged him back and they went off to eat.

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Now Daniel watched Vala as she sat there so excited about sharing their findings with the rest of the team, eager to help Daniel and Rayna in any way possible. He was the only one who noticed her pallor and slight redness he saw in her eyes.

Daniel stood up and Jack rolled his eyes.

"You'll be glad to know that Rayna is going to explain what we found out and not me. Yes, I'm talking to you Jack!"

Jack had the grace to look sheepish but couldn't keep himself from grinning at Daniel's attempt to look hurt and insulted.

"Well Danny Boy, that's all well and good, but what about the boring slides, graphs and charts"

Vala bounced up out of her chair. "That's what I'm here for Jack. Daniel put me in charge of the graphics. And believe me there are no photographs of dull old pictographs, tablets or artifacts."

Rayna stood and moved over to the side so everyone could see the screen.

"Daniel and I got to the planet and were met by a small group of Nox. The first thing we …"

Rayna was interrupted by gasps. When she'd started to speak Vala had brought up the first image, a drawing done in colored pencil, with a watercolor wash over part of the picture. Though nor a photograph it included a tremendous amount of detail. Rayna was standing next to the Gate reaching into the brown leather messenger bag she had slung across her shoulder. She was wearing a typical Rayna outfit, jeans, red cowboy boots and a red tee shirt with the Death Cab for Cutie logo. Daniel was behind her just stepping through the Gate. The artist had caught him with his left foot and backpack still partially hidden by the shimmering blue inside the Gate. From the expression on his face and his body language you could tell that he was trying, unsuccessfully, to suppress his excitement. There was a group of Nox standing at the edge of the woods. One of them, a slightly confused and disheveled older man, had a look of disappointment on his face. He appeared to be looking for someone else to come through the Star Gate. Next to him were two small children, a girl and a boy, who stared at the Gate with eyes open wide in disbelief. Obviously in charge a haughty looking Lya was smiling at them warily. The woods were lush; almost jungle like in the variety of foliage and the sky was a pale silver blue. The sky and the plants had been covered with a wash and blended them together giving a fairyland effect to the planet.

Jack spoke first. "What the hell …?" but was interrupted by Mitchell.

"Did you draw that Vala?"

Panic in her voice she apologized. "I'm so sorry. I didn't mean anything. I thought a few illustrations would …"

Vala had turned off the PC immediately in response to jack's outburst. Sam looked closely at Vala seeing her trembling chin and the hurt expression in her eyes. Then Vala took a deep cleansing breath and set her face into a look that said "You can't hurt me. I don't care if you don't like me. I don't know what I did wrong but I did it on purpose to piss you off". Rayna had reached over and touched Vala on her shoulder in a protective gesture. Teal'c looked both confused and angry.

Vala and Rayna jumped as Jack burst out laughing. "Vala, I love you. I've been waiting to see something like this for years. Your illustration's told me more about what happened than Danny Boy could in twenty minutes. During which I would have been nodding off for at least the last ten minutes."

Vala frowned at Jack trying to tell if he was teasing. Continuing to laugh Jack got up and walked to Vala and swung her chair around to face him. Jack took his hands in hers and pulled a very puzzled Vala to her feet. He grabbed her in a bear hug while lifting her off the floor then kissing her forehead before putting her down. He stepped back and Vala fell back onto her chair. Daniel was beaming as Sam, Teal'c and Rayna smiled in relief. Mitchell was shaking his head saying "Princess, that's amazing. How did you do that? You weren't even there."

With a serious look she tried to explain. "Rayna and Daniel told me what happened in great detail and through their descriptions I could see what they saw. Plus I've been to the planet and met Lya and my old friend Raf. I knew Raf would be looking for me and that Lya would have that seemingly friendly, know it all, bitchy look on her face."

Rayna choked back a laugh while Daniel started to protest.

"Trust me Daniel. I was there the first time and saw how she acted during your questions, looking like butter wouldn't melt in her mouth and all the time stonewalling you."

By this time Jack was back in his chair and still laughing though more quietly. Sam spoke up. "Perhaps Rayna and Daniel should continue"

Vala turned the computer on silently mouthing "thank you" to Sam.

"After Lya greeted us Raf and the children faded back into the trees. The three of us walked to a meeting place in the forest with a cave nearby. Once there she introduced us to Mar and we started our discussion."

Vala had changed the image as Rayna continued to describe their visit. The second picture showed the four of them in a clearing surrounded with blooming trees. There were carved benches and large rocks available for sitting. Ivy like plants dotted with small yellow flowers grew up from the ground and over the sides and backs of the benches. Cam was reminded of the Honeysuckle vines that would around the fence in his Grandmother's backyard. Rayna sat on a bench with an open notebook on her lap and a pen in her left hand. Daniel's pack lay on the ground next to her feet while he stood in the center like a lawyer preparing to defend his case. Lya perched on a rock close to the cave and Mar stood by her side his eyes seemingly focused on an empty spot between Daniel and the cave. There was a stone archway at the entrance to the cave covered with carvings of plants and flowers like on the benches, carvings that were very similar to those on Rayna's planet. Again the detailed renderings of Rayna, Daniel, the beautiful ethereal Lya and pudgy little Mar gave a crystal clear picture of the scene. Mar looked like you were watching an episode of Star Trek and Mr. Spock's body had been squashed down and out, covered with glue then rolled in a briar patch. You could feel the tension between Lya and Daniel, Rayna looked alert but calm and Mar almost comatose. Again the woods and sky blended into one soft and muted background of greens and blues.

"It was an odd experience. We would ask questions, rephrasing and asking again when we received no answer. At times Mar would slip over towards the cave, enter and almost as quickly as he went in he would come out and respond to a question or request clarification. After a while I decided that there was no Ancient in the cave to be consulted but that Mar was in constant silent communication with their friend. That the trips to the cave were meant to make us feel comfortable, that we would be uneasy with the concept of an internal mental dialog between Mar and their source and therefore felt it would be better to create the charade of their cave consultations."

Daniel added. "I thought the same thing and they weren't even very good at it. Half the time Mar looked so zoned out I hoped that he was communicating with something and the way he popped in and out of the cave was pretty funny. I don't think Lya thought much of his performance, the more obvious his behavior became the less eye contact she would make with me. I have to admit that at the time I was insulted that they thought so little of our powers of comprehension but I didn't want to appear hostile and "childish" by complaining, it seemed a harmless deception." Daniel looked at Jack when he'd said the word "childish" and put it in air quotes.

Vala had put up the third drawing of the same clearing this one showing Mar ducking into the cave, Lya looking disgusted while Daniel and Rayna exchanged gleeful smiles.

"And now about our answers."

Rayna motioned to the screen which was now a simple list of the five questions. Sam was pleased to see the slide consisted of black text on a white background, no Gothic or other fancy fonts, no italics, no bold, no underlining, no bullets, no Roman numerals, no bright colors. Just plain twelve point Times New Roman letters.

"These were the questions we wanted answered. Are we Nox? Were all of us ascended, deascended and given amnesia together? Was the loss of our memories intended? Were my people aware of what did happen and what was going to happen? And the sixty-four thousand dollar question. Who are we?"

"And we got some sort of answer for pretty much every one. Are we Nox? After a lot of bull about what is Nox, perhaps very similar to Nox is Nox, the typical yada, yada, yada, blah, blah, blah they admitted we were not Nox. I, for one, breathed a sigh of relief." Rayna and Vala exchanged a look and smile of agreement. The rest were shocked to see a similar smile and nod from Teal'c.

Sam asked "So how did you get them to tell you?"

"We did what Vala suggested and convinced them that we didn't really care that much. And that if they answered it they could appear to be co-operating with us without giving up any vital information."

"So you did care or you didn't?"

Rayna answered. "Well, Mitchell, once we established that we were a separate group from the Nox all of our other questions would be limited to us. They couldn't come up with answer that could apply to us or the Nox. They'd used that tactic before and we wanted a way to prevent them using it again. It may sound silly but it worked for us."

Mitchell continued to look confused. "I suppose that makes sense."

"We wanted to know if we were deascended together and if so were we the first group ascension? And why did we lose our memories? The first part was straightforward. Yes, we were ascended and then deascended as a group. We had to drag it out of them but finally they did admit our ascension had been a unanimous decision as was our deascension. It was the first and only time that they ascended a whole people and it had been a mistake. Getting them to almost accept responsibility for their actions put them on the defensive; they answered more questions in an attempt to justify their behavior."

"What made them ascend all of you in the first place?"

"Well, Jack, we were a very spiritual people, concerned with truth more than success in the physical world. And our being empaths was considered a positive trait, at least at that time. Though a few felt that we weren't quite "serious" enough, eventually they all agreed we were worthy to be ascended at the appropriate time. Then there was a crisis, our world was under attack by an aggressive primitive race living on a neighboring planet. Our people were dying and as they died individuals were offered ascension. Then the killings became wholesale slaughter and a decision was made to ascend all of our people before our race was made extinct."

"That makes sense. I'm actually impressed that they had such a caring reaction to your plight."

Daniel replied. "Sam, they really are ascended to a higher plane of existence; they've tried to remain separate from their former reality. I really believe their intentions are good. They care enough to ascend deserving souls but that's the only way they want to interact with the physical plane. Some Ancients feel that the action of ascension itself is too much interference. Their concept of good may be different than ours but they aren't evil. They try to be consistent in how they interpret their own rules but mistakes are made and will always be made, they can never completely remove some remnants of their basic emotions, no matter how hard they try."

"I've never really understood that whole you deserve to move beyond mortal life and we will help you, but you gotta cut off all of your ties to what made you deserving of ascension. I think maybe it's just too abstract for a country boy like me to wrap his head around."

Sam was unable to resist making a crack. "Yeah, I've always had a problem with abstract poetry myself."

Mitchell sat still not moving a muscle.

Vala chimed in. "Oh yeah. Edith Sitwell, right Sam?"

Mitchell looked panicked but a quick glance around the table reassured him. Everyone else's attention was focused on Rayna. Though when he let out a sigh of relief he could have sworn he saw Teal'c out of the corner of his eye. Teal'c with an actual smile on his face.

"Exactly why were we deascended? It turns out when an individual is ascended there is a mentoring phase that helps them adjust or actually readjust to life, such as it is. When they tried to assimilate people who had an existing group identity rather than one person from a group their methods didn't work all that well. Plus according to Mar, or his inner voice, we were a "lively" group. It didn't help that we decided we preferred the physical plane, that we felt we'd lived more spiritual lives unascended, that our empathy for all living creatures was the basis of our identity as a people and most of all that immortality was too high a price to pay when we would gain so little."

Mitchell whistled in admiration. "Man, you guys are tough! I don't know if I'd of stuck to my principles in your place."

"They decided that we'd been an "error in judgment" and those that had been against it indulged in a little Ancient I told you so. As the whole group thing had been a unilateral decision on their part they agreed to let us live and return us to the physical plane. Our planet was still under the control of our neighbors so we were relocated to a planet similar to our own. Then there was another mistake and everyone lost their memories. I'm not sure how they had intended to send us back with no knowledge of our ascension but what ever they had in mind didn't work."

Sam asked. "But when they saw how you had to live your lives why didn't they help?"

"Many felt that any more interference would be dangerous and possibly cause more harm. We were told that our situation was even now still under discussion. They don't like to be precipitous so they didn't expect any decision in the near future."

"But what about the loss of your culture?"

"Well Sam, Mar tried hard to explain their reasoning; I think he had trouble understanding it himself. The best we could figure was that on our own we had reproduced much of our former society including our core values. We continued to live in the same manner with the same approach to all living things. They were pleased that we remained empaths but it was a little fuzzy about our other skills, those we use for self-protection. My theory is that they felt responsible for our plight so some of them surreptitiously provided us access to those abilities. At least that'll give Sam and me another direction in which to focus our research."

Sam looked pleased. "That certainly raises a lot of questions, and hopefully we'll find some answers."

"We moved on to whether my people understood what was involved in deascending. It turned out that we were the first of to be deascended. Before then if an individual was interested in the possibility, though they weren't admitting there had been anyone, the person came to the realization that they didn't really want to leave after all. I think it would take a very strong person to resist their influence."

Looking with pride at Daniel Vala interjected. "Stubborn, single minded SOB is what you mean."

With a look of admiration Mitchell added. "Kudos to you, Jackson!"

"So we had no idea what was involved and neither did they. But we were willing to take our chances. In the worst case we would end up dead. The same dead we'd have been if we had been left on our planet. We respected their decisions but we couldn't live with them. Actually the Ancients think that my people would still have made the same decision knowing that our history and memories were lost. As for me, I have to agree. So all in all I think that Daniel and I did a very good job. I, for one, am delighted with the answers. I'm looking forward to talking to Mya though I suspect she won't understand why we worked so hard and why I even care. Some of my people will be interested but I am certain that most of them will agree with Mya. Which, I'm proud to say, pleases me to no end."

Rayna sat down and smiled at everyone sitting around the table.

"And?"

"And what, Colonel Mitchell?"

"Who are or were you guys?"

"I'd like Daniel to finish up our report. I know that he's very pleased to have Jack here. Daniel, you're on!"

Daniel stood up and looking directly at Jack announced. "They're the Furlings!"

VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV

Back in the Library Vala was sitting on Daniel's lap, Rayna sat in the other desk chair with Teal'c standing directly behind her with his hands on her shoulders.

Vala clapped her hands together. "Well, that was exciting!"

Daniel looked closely at her face trying to determine if she was being facetious.

"No, seriously. That was fun. I think that Jack might have been serious about liking my illustrations, which is exciting for me."

Teal'c assured her. "I know that he was serious. I, myself, found them a welcome addition. Occasionally Dr. Jackson has had to spend a great deal of time and effort to impart important information to us. And occasionally it has been a little tedious for those of us who do not share his passions."

"Teal'c, I can't believe it. You decide to start speaking in full sentences even paragraphs. And the first thing you do is disrespect me and my life's work! Me, your best friend, comrade, fellow team member …" Unable to continue his attempt at indignation Daniel started laughing.

Rayna asked Daniel. "How do you think Jack is doing? He didn't say anything at all when you made your announcement."

"I think he's still processing. He's always wanted to meet the Furlings and now he knows who they are. But they don't know who they are!"

"Well Darling, I'm glad that Sam is the one who'll have to deal with his "processing"."

Daniel looked confused and his forehead was wrinkled. Vala wiggled around to face him and kissed his forehead then moved her mouth down to his ear whispering "Later Darling. All will be answered."

"I think that we all "done good" guys. Teal'c let's take these crazy kids out somewhere and feed them. What do you think?"

"Indeed."


	51. Epilogue

Epilogue

SG-1 was working in and around the Gate Room in a temple on a planet where Vala's network of contacts had reported rumors of hidden Goa'uld technology. Ever since SGC had provided Vala with adequate funding she'd been able to establish a network of criminal and quasi-criminal contacts throughout the galaxy. Between prompt and generous payments, professional respect and affection for Vala and their total fear of and hatred for the Priors and other enemies of the Tau'ri, her "posse" had proven to be reliable sources of information on more than one occasion.

Teal'c was outside keeping guard and Mitchell was standing next to the Gate ready to defend SG-1 if anyone or anything got past Teal'c. There was a wall covered in text directly across from the Gate. A gaping hole had been broken through into another room. Vala's body, from her waist up, was sticking through the wall into that room. Daniel was sitting on the floor next to her legs with notebook and pencil in hand. Vala was making rubbings of text from the walls inside the room and every so often pulled herself back out and passed her work to Daniel who would then copy it in his notebook. Sam was sitting on the floor three feet to the right of the hole writing notes about a Goa'uld looking device lying on the floor at her feet. The hole in the wall had been there when they arrived. Vala was the only member of the team small enough to crawl in and the first thing she'd found was a small gold ring similar to one of the Goa'uld healing devices. It had a tiny power crystal embedded in the setting. Vala had given it to Sam to study and wiggled back through the hole. Daniel didn't want to tear down any more of the wall before checking out the contents. They hadn't been able to find a door and there were writings on the inside walls which would be destroyed if they made the hole any larger. Vala and Daniel were working together to transcribe the texts.

What Mitchell was, was bored. The three of them were busy and all he had to do was stand around. So he decided to see if he could encourage some spirited discussion among his friends. His mother would have accused him of trying to stir up a hornet's nest just for his own entertainment. She would have also warned him about getting himself stung, and deservedly so, as a result of such a stupid move. But it had been a long and tedious morning.

"So, I'm thinking about buying a house. Jackson, you still living on base?"

Daniel answered without looking up. "Absolutely. Free rent and board. You can't beat it. Especially when you consider how much Vala likes to eat."

Through the wall came a loud voice. "I can hear you guys."

"All you're hearing is the truth, my little sugarplum." In response you could hear what sounded like an exasperated snort.

Daniel continued to answer Mitchell in a more serious tone. "Aside from the obvious convenience. Which is worth a lot to us …"

Vala broke in. "It's nice to never be less than ten minutes from the closest bed."

Mitchell put his hands over his ears. "Way too much info, thank you very much!"

"As I was saying, the cost is a large part of it."

Sam hesitantly said. "I don't want to be rude, but now that Vala's getting a salary I'd think you'd be okay. Since you're not military they can pay you as civilian consultants and, not that I object, but you can get paid a lot more than me or Mitchell."

"Yeah, even with hazard pay."

Daniel looked embarrassed and unsure. "Well, you see …"

A muffled voice broke in. "It's me. I spend all my money plus some of his. What can I say? I'm a high maintenance kind of girl!"

"That's an awful lot of something. You don't even have a car. What the hell do you buy Princess?"

Sam gave Mitchell a reprimanding look.

Acting innocent Mitchell looked at Sam, saying. "What? It's not like she's shy about revealing the other intimate details of her life."

Trying to whisper Daniel said. "It's not that. She divides her money .."

In an emphatic voice Vala yelled. "None of their business Daniel. I'm the one who decides what I tell or don't tell. And I choose don't. So just shut the hell up, Darling!"

Mitchell and Sam looked shocked. Vala caring what anyone knew about her was unusual enough but her getting angry at Daniel was just strange. And you could hear in her voice that she was actually angry. She wasn't kidding or teasing or playing. Plus Daniel looked guilty. Mitchell turned away trying to decide if he should go check on Teal'c, anything to get away.

Sam knew that something was off. Daniel looked too upset and embarrassed, there was obviously a problem. She glared at him and her expression said 'Tell me what's going on or die a horrible death.' Daniel just shrugged his shoulders and mouthed the word 'sorry'. Suddenly his face lit up and he smiled. Sam could've sworn that she'd seen the proverbial light bulb turn on above his head. Daniel mouthed the word 'talk' while he pulled a piece of paper out of his notebook and picked up his pencil.

"Well, I think a house is a good investment. And you get the added tax benefit for the interest you pay on your mortgage."

Daniel had quickly written a note which he passed to Sam; she palmed the paper hiding it from Mitchell. Feeling as if she was back in school she unfolded the note. What he'd scrawled was 'Half of all her salary goes to Darfur Relief and the other half to Doctors Without Borders.' Sam finished reading and looked over at Daniel who was making a shushing motion with his finger over his mouth. Sam smiled and resolved to keep Vala's secret, at least until the next time she saw Jack. Vala's generosity didn't surprise Sam. Both Vala and Daniel were concerned with redemption for past sins, sins that most people wouldn't even consider sins. The two of them felt a strong need to pay back something to the universe.

Vala had once told Sam that a real bed, hot water, all the food she could eat and knowing there would always be food available was the epitome of ultimate luxury. Having numerous slaves to do your bidding, gold jewelry and great clothes paled next to a hot shower. And the same for an adventurous, glamorous, exciting life of crime! Other people might think of Vala as superficial and selfish but by now Sam knew that was untrue. Vala had turned out to be even quicker than Daniel when it came to making sacrifices for others. Vala was one of the most generous people Sam knew, not just with things, but with her time and her affection. Her multitude of friends on base knew Vala really cared about them and their lives, knew that she was genuinely interested in them, knew they could always go to her with a problem when they just wanted to talk and knew they'd leave feeling better.

Whether Mitchell picked up on the subtle change of atmosphere or was just even more bored than before. But whichever it was, he decided to prod Daniel a little more to see what would happen.

"Hey, Daniel. Teal'c was asking when you two were goin' get hitched. Just what's the story there?"

Sam broke in. "I doubt very much that's how Teal'c phrased the question. Ignore Mitchell; he's bored and just trying to get your goat." Realizing what she'd said Sam yelled in the direction of Vala's ass. "I'll explain that to you later, Vala."

Hearing her name Vala pulled herself back into the room and looked blankly at Sam. "Goat?"

Daniel had turned to look at Mitchell. "Married? Teal'c wants to know when we're getting married." Daniel looked confused. "Why?"

Mitchell looked at Vala who was staring angrily at Daniel and couldn't help himself.

"What do you mean by why? Why get married? Why get married to each other? Or why would Teal'c care?"

Vala suddenly hit Daniel's shoulder with one of her fists. Sam looked angrily at Mitchell, who gave her a "don't blame" shrug.

"Daniel. What kind of an idiot are you! You're absolutely unbelievable." Sam and Mitchell were taken aback by the distress in her voice. If she'd been angry before it was nothing compared to this. Vala was livid and looked ready to explode. Suddenly Mitchell was distraught; he hadn't meant to really upset anyone, he'd only wanted to tease them. After all the grief he'd given Jackson about hurting Vala, now he'd been the one to hurt her. Both Sam and Mitchell looked anxiously at Daniel and saw that Vala was pointing her finger at his notes. "Right there, you moron. You've written it down all wrong. Look how you copied that icon; the orientation is completely ass backwards. Are you an idiot?" Vala jabbed her finger repeatedly on one section of the page.

"Who died and left you the expert?" Daniel held the notebook up comparing it to the onion skin rubbing Vala had passed to him minutes earlier. After a few seconds he sighed and smiled sheepishly at Vala. "Ok. Yes, you're right. I was wrong. You are a goddess and I am your lowly minion."

Vala leaned over and took Daniel's face between her hands. "Damn straight. And don't you ever forget it!" Daniel put his hands on Vala's shoulders and slowly pushed her back onto the floor. As he pushed her down he moved so that he was soon lying on top of her and she was flat on her back. Daniel started to kiss Vala as if they had been apart for days.

After twenty seconds Mitchell walked over and pulled them apart. "Ok. That was my fault. But break it up. Keep your eyes on the prize children. Back to work. You too, Sam. What do you think this is, a free show?" Mitchell was barely able to jump out of the way when Sam reached for his ankle, though if she hadn't been laughing so hard she might've gotten him no matter how fast he'd moved.

Vala smiled at Mitchell. She and Daniel slowly separated and sat back up. "I can't imagine why you would think we'd react to your comments. Since Teal'c is giving me away I seriously doubt if he would've asked such a question." Turning around Vala started to crawl back into the hole.

Sam reached over, grabbed her feet and pulled Vala back into the room. "Teal'c's giving you away? When? Where? I didn't see any ring. Vala, do not let Daniel bullshit you about not needing a ring. There is feminism and outmoded rituals and then there are engagement rings!"

Vala grinned. Reaching into her top she pulled out a gold chain from around her neck. There was an antique emerald ring hanging from the chain.

Mitchell yelled. "All of you. Back to work now, no more lolly gagging. We got places to go, things to see."

As she started to crawl back into the wall Vala said to Sam. "When we get back I'll show you my dress and you can explain the goat and the lolly gagging."

"You got a deal."

Vala stuck her head back out again saying. "Sam, you do know you're my Maid of Honor, right?"

"Thanks Vala. I'll try and return the favor." Sam had unconsciously touched the chain around her neck when she answered Vala. Vala noticed the slight movement of her hand and asked Sam a question with her eyes. Sam couldn't refuse her look and carefully pulled up the chain exposing, for the briefest moment, a diamond ring hanging next to her dog tags. Vala gestured with her head towards Daniel asking silently for permission to share the information. Sam shook her head no mouthing the words "not yet" and the two women returned to work without saying another word.


End file.
